All Roads Lead Back Home
by Charah
Summary: Chuck and Sarah share that magical breathtaking kiss at the beach. But what happens next? Will Sarah walk away from the love of her life who she can't remember? Or will she fight to recover what was taken from her, and find herself again once more? Join me and find out :)
1. Chapter 1

**AN** Throughout my time on fanfiction, many people have given me some wise wisdom, which was: write for yourself. So this is me doing exactly that. If I had to pick a story out of all tales that I've ever had thoughts about writing that was purely for me, then this is it. I did not like in any shape or form whatsoever the way that Chuck ended - you don't make a wife forget her husband. The finale that Fedak gave us is not romance in any capacity whatsoever. So this story is my take on what happens to Chuck and Sarah after the beach. I hope you'll enjoy it.

Anybody expecting a prolonged dosage of angst beyond the first few chapters in this story should look away. Chuck and Sarah had so much anguish throughout the series, and I don't feel like they deserve any more. There's no more CIA, no more deception, just two young people with nothing standing between them as they work through their problems with the ultimate goal of falling in love again :)

Disclaimer: I don't own Chuck. I wish that I owned Chuck because I would have given Charah the ending that they deserved. The whole Chuck cast minus Charah got an end. Great joke, Fedak!

* * *

 **All Roads Lead Back Home**

 **Chapter One**

* * *

So he had located her again. He had found her through Morgan telling him to follow his heart, and he did pursue his heart, and now he had found her once more. He had found her, and he had made her laugh, and he had made her cry as he passionately shared their life story with his wife once more for an indefinite period of time as they sat together on _their_ spot on the beach. Chuck and Sarah had shared many bonding moments in the five years they had known each other at this spot. And, as it happens, him following his heart wasn't quite the only piece of advice from Morgan that Chuck had followed. No, instead, he had also suggested Morgan's crazy fairytale idea of one magical kiss that would bring back her memories to her and thus, their marriage, their happiness and their combined collective future that they planned to share with each other for the rest of their lives.

It was unquestionably a magical kiss that Chuck and Sarah had just shared. Now obviously, it will not go down on the Chuck and Sarah all-time best-kiss record books. But Sarah had told him to kiss her. It had taken almost two weeks, but it was the first real sign of hope for Chuck, that his wife may one day learn to love him again, as he will love her, until the end of his time. And he is now about to find out just how magical that kiss was as they had just pulled apart from the kiss. That magical, breathtaking kiss that lasted for quite some time. Sarah had even eventually reciprocated the physical action to him, in where she had moved her hand to caress his face as they kissed each other.

Breathing in a deep sigh to himself, he begins his hail mary, the last throw of the game with everything on the line, one gigantic leap of faith in where his future and the rest of his life may quite possibly be decided right here and now in where he will either get his wife back, or be given a chance to win her back, or be alone for the rest of his life.

Mustering up the biggest amount of courage he could possibly muster, he looks into the eyes of his wife. "So, did it work? Do you remember anything?" he asks as he then begins to feel nervous yet hopeful. He feels his body trembling deep inside in bated anticipation of her response to him.

He continues to look into the eyes of his wife who he has shared so many happy moments within the years he has known her but who yet now feels like a complete stranger, and he watches as she begins to shake her head no to him sympathetically.

"I remember that you're a good kisser," she says to him as a sympathetic smile starts to take form.

On hearing her response, his gaze immediately starts to shift away from his wife, and his gaze finishes as he starts to stare down at the floor in sadness and despair as his hopes and dreams begin to shatter and his anxiety starts to race as he begins to feel his heart start to palpitate on hearing his wife's dreaded words to him.

"It was a stupid idea," he admits after a long moment of silence and sadness as he then begins to breathe out a long, deep drawn-out sigh in despondence before then gazing right back at his wife once more with the faintest of smiles. This smile certainly was not one of the young man's trademark grins that's for sure...

"So, what happens now?" He asks eventually, feeling hopeful, nervous, vulnerable, petrified. He's not even sure if he wants to hear her answer to his question. She will probably leave him. She'd already previously told him that she didn't feel it, back at the fountain...

He watches as she begins to sigh for a long moment and she shifts her gaze away from him and out into the ocean with the sun shining brightly millions and millions of miles away as she begins to collect and gather her thoughts.

"Chuck... I like you," she says eventually, and she pauses to smile warmly at him. "I like our story. And I want to be around you. But I don't know what the future holds. I need time, to figure things out," she admits to him.

Chuck stares at his wife as he then begins to nod his head in acceptance to her on hearing her words to him as he then musters every single ounce of hope and determination—and by god he has an abundance of that after everything that has happened to the young man— that he possesses to bring himself to smile faintly at her. _I guess it's better than never seeing her again. I don't think I would be able to live with that. I can work with this. At least she is prepared to give me a chance_

"Of course. Sarah, all that you have known for your whole life is living on the run with your dad, and then spying for the CIA. So I don't expect you to rush back into a marriage as much as it pains me to say it," he pauses as he has to choke back a sudden tidal wave of emotions that has suddenly drowned him in grief caused from him saying something that has quite literally just killed him inside. "Just know, I'm here for you always," he says as his emotions continue to threaten to overwhelm him and his gaze sinks to the sand once more in sadness.

"I should think so. You're my husband," she says in an attempt to lighten the mood with a warm, inviting smile on the young woman's face in an attempt to help perk him up from his obviously depressive mood stemmed from him being petrified that he may be about to lose his wife for good. She didn't need to be a spy to be able to read the body language of somebody, probably just a few seconds away from bursting into tears with grief.

"Heh," The young man says, and he lifts his face up once more on hearing his wife's words, and a humongous grin begins to form on his face on hearing her humour to him in his time of sadness.

On seeing the enormous, vibrant smile and his sad puppy-like eyes, Sarah's stomach begins to turn, and she suddenly feels as if she has been thrown into a burning oven as a sudden rush of heat flows through her body. Seeing her husband's grin has caused her to feel an instant attraction to his loving warmth. Oh, she can certainly see how she fell in love with him. That smile alone that he has just given her is enough to melt her strongest of walls. And then there was the kiss. That breathtaking magical kiss. Sarah can not remember ever kissing anybody like that before in her life. She could feel his emotions as he kissed her. She could feel his affinity towards her in the way that he delicately caressed her face with his hand. No, this man would worship her until his dying breath, of that she is sure. She may not remember him. But she doesn't need her past memories to be able to read him. Everything he has said to her in the just two weeks that she can recall knowing him has turned to be true. She cannot continue to doubt the intentions of this man she is sitting next to simply because there is no longer any foundation or basis on which to mistrust him. It was all a lie. Setup and orchestrated by Nicholas Quinn who is now deceased. _And may he burn in hell_

"Chuck, I believe everything that you have told me over the course of however long we have been out here on this beach." she pauses. "I have also watched and studied the mission reports." she pauses once more as the husband and wife gaze at each other on their spot, at their beach. "Everything that you have said to me ties into the reports. I believe you. I don't remember it, but I feel a strong attraction to you." she pauses once more to regain her breath and he waits patiently for his wife to finish talking as he takes in every single word that his wife is saying to him. "It sounds like we had some really great things and I really wish I could remember them, and it really sucks that I can't and that it was taken away from us because we don't deserve that." the young woman pauses once more, and he nods his head in agreement. "But Chuck, even if I don't remember and I hope one day that I do, but we can create new memories together. I just need a bit of time to figure things out. I need to see somebody. For their help," she finishes with a warm, encouraging smile.

Chuck begins to nod his head in acceptance on hearing his wife's admissions to him. "Your mom?" he then asks.

On hearing his words, a look of concern immediately forms on her face, and she quirks her eyebrow up in puzzlement and confusion as Sarah then begins to eye Chuck up warily for a brief moment and she tightens her guard so as not to give away or let anything slip after what he has just said to her.

"You know about her?" Sarah then asks him cautiously. _Of course, he knows. He's my husband._

"Yeah..." Chuck admits, and he pauses to nod his head at her. "I didn't want to bring her up when I told you our story because I didn't want to spook you. I know about Molly too. Your mom has adopted her as her child, and she knows you as her sister. You told me about them recently. And I helped you with a situation and crisis that you had faced." he admits as he refreshes his wife's forgotten memories.

"What about Ryker?" she asks him in a very concerned tone of voice. _If Chuck knows about Molly, then other people could possibly too._ Sarah shifts back into agent mode once more.

"He's no longer a threat. Molly is safe," Chuck says reassuringly to his wife.

"Chuck, what happened to him?" Sarah asks him in a still concerned tone of voice.

"Um," Chuck pauses as he begins to cough on a sore topic. "You killed him," he admits. "You were both involved in a struggle. And he had tried to kill you inside your mother's home. He is dead and no further threat to your mom, or to Molly."

Sarah takes a long moment of reflection to register everything that Chuck has just told her as she tries so desperately hard once more to remember things, as she has been trying ever since she had learnt that her memory of the past few years had been suppressed or erased.

"I have been keeping in contact regularly with your mom ever since we met each other, and so have you. She will want to see you. I can take you there?" Chuck offers as he smiles, warmly at her.

Sarah shakes her head no before giving him her response. "No, Chuck. I need to do this on my own," she admits.

Chuck's body language then enters into a deflated state on hearing Sarah's response to him.

Sarah immediately caught on to his deflated persona, obviously. She might not remember her husband and his body language and how he behaves. But she's still Sarah. She can read anybody to perfection.

Sarah then decides to cut in once more to offer her husband some reassurance that she's not just going to take off and never see him again like he is obviously profoundly fearing right now. "I'm coming back, Chuck. I just need a few days to figure things out and to figure how I feel about you," she says and pauses to smile reassuringly at him. "Chuck, this is not easy for me to say… But I trust you."

On hearing Sarah's reassurances to him and her telling him that she trusts him, an enormous grin begins to form on Chuck's face. He knows how hard that was for Sarah to say to him what she has just said. His wife is not the Sarah Bartowski who he has known for five years right now. That Sarah had learnt to trust many people. But at this moment, she's back to being the Sarah Walker when he had met her for the first time. The Sarah Walker that shed and burnt identities more than a regular normal person would change credit cards. That Sarah doesn't know how to trust anybody, so for her to tell him that alone fills him with such hope and happiness that things may just work out, even if it is only the slightest glimmer of hope to cling onto, he will take it because it's all that he has to stop him from falling down a very dark hole.

"Thank you, Sarah. You don't know what that means to me to hear you say that," he says to her with overwhelming relief, and he begins to grin widely.

"I should probably get going though Chuck, while it's early. We've been out here for quite a while," she admits as she gazes into his eyes.

"Yeah, that is a good idea I guess," Chuck replies to her in a resigned tone of voice.

They then begin to stand up together, and on standing, the husband and wife begin to gaze at each other in a heartbreaking moment of silence.

Sarah then moves to hug him. "I will come back, Chuck. I can promise you that I will come back. I want to be around you. It's just for a few days," she says, reassuringly inside the embrace with him.

Chuck nods his head and emotion begins to fill upon his face, and he has to fight back his tears. "I will be right here waiting for you, Sarah," he declares powerfully.

A bright smile begins to form on Sarah's face on hearing his declaration, and they then start to separate from the embrace.

"I'll call you," she says while nodding her head at him to reinforce her words as the husband and wife continue to gaze at each other.

"Absolutely. Call me any time you want. Sarah, you are my life. And you always will be," he declares powerfully to her with an adoring smile on his face.

Sarah smiles a final time at him before turning, and she then begins to walk away as Chuck watches on as his wife continues to walk away from him. She turns back to look at him a final time, and they gaze once more from a distance before she turns once more and disappears out from sight.

Chuck starts to sigh deeply to himself, as he stands in the sand and his gaze for an indefinite period of time continues to lock in the direction that his wife had just departed from…

* * *

 **AN** So, what do we think? Is there any interest from any of you to see my take on what happens after the beach? Leave a review and let me know!

The next chapter will involve Sarah heading to visit her mother. You can't beat a bit of motherly advice in a time of crisis! Also, there will be a long flashback to Chuck telling Sarah their story.


	2. Chapter 2

**AN** Thank you all for the reviews for the first chapter. Keep reviewing! You wonderful people :)

Shoutout to WillieGarvin. His short little post-finale tale has helped me to explain something that will be touched upon in this chapter (though it will only be expanded in further detail later on in this fiction )

*Edit* Thank you to Chuckster2016 for informing me of the situation concerning the Porsche and the Lotus. I really did have no idea what happened and it was purely guesswork as it's been a few years since I last watched Chuck because the final two episodes are just too unbearable for me.

This chapter is going to be a long one. I wasn't going to show Chuck telling Sarah their story. But I saw an opening for it and decided to go with it. None of us know exactly what Chuck told Sarah about their lives together, so I'll just go with the flow and see where it takes me. Post-finale stories are our own interpretations after all :)

Word count for this chapter: 15,775. My longest ever chapter in all of my fictions :) So please review with your feedback on it.

Disclaimer: I don't own Chuck. And this chapter contains full series spoilers.

* * *

 **All Roads Lead Back Home**

 **Chapter Two**

* * *

Sarah has just pulled her Lotus to a stop that she cannot even remember acquiring. The documents inside of the dashboard however tell a completely different story, as those papers prove ownership to a one 'Sarah Lisa Bartowski' _What happened to my Porsche? Where is it? Did I get rid of it?_

Sarah moves her hand to shut down the engine of the vehicle as she then begins to take a moment of reflection and pause outside of her destination: the home of her mother. The drive had taken her a few hours to get here and throughout the entire journey, Chuck had been in the centre of her mind for the whole distance. Sarah can't explain why she feels like this, but leaving Chuck at that beach after everything they had done on it was one of the hardest decisions that she has ever had to make at least in the time before the past five years of her life that has been wiped out. _Their_ story that he had told her for however long they had spoke had filled her up a wide multitude of emotions towards him that she had not experienced in the only two weeks that she can remember knowing him and that kiss they had shared together had sealed it and had made her realize: she loves Chuck Bartowski. And she doesn't know what to do about it...

* * *

 **Earlier that day...**

Sarah Lisa Bartowski, though she presently knows herself only as 'Sarah Walker' is presently sitting on a beach in Malibu that feels so familiar to her, even if she does not remember the first thing about it. She had driven around in a car that is also not familiar to her. She had drove and as she had drove, she had thought and as she had thought, she tried to find herself and who she is once more, until the road had led her to here in this exact spot. There was just something so powerful about this place to her, though she couldn't for the life of her recall _what_. Sarah was still in deep thought when she becomes acutely aware of the presence of somebody else to the side of her. Her eyes move and fix to connect onto Chuck, her husband that she cannot remember. She watches as he moves to take a seat next to her and they begin to gaze at each other.

"I was hoping you would be here," he says to her after a moment of pause.

"This place is important, isn't it?" she asks him. _How did I remember this beach? How do I know it's important to us? What led me to here?_

He nods his head. "Yeah. Yeah, very much. This is actually where you told me that I was gonna be okay," he pauses, as he turns slightly to gaze into his wife's eyes. "That I could trust you. And that's exactly what I'm doing now. I'm asking you to trust me."

On hearing his words, she makes eye contact with him once more.

"Sarah, I don't," he stutters." I don't want anything from you. I," he pauses. "I just need you to know that wherever you go, I'll always be there to help you."

Sarah nods her head at his words to her as her eyes become a little glossy. _Why do I feel so emotional with him when_ _I have no memories of our life that we lived together for five years?_

"Someone you can call," he pauses as he begins to choke up, his tone sounding hoarse. "Whenever."

Hearing his words, and his tone used makes her stare into his eyes as her own eyes suddenly now begin to get very glossy. _Why can't_ _I_ _remember him?_ _W_ _hat's wrong with me? Why do I feel_ _such_ _strong emotion_ _on seeing him upset and_ _him_ _suffering?_

"Trust me, Sarah," he pauses, as the husband and wife stare at each other, their eyes both glossy. "I'm here for you always."

 _Why are his words so overpowering and so emotional to me? I feel like somebody I love has just died and has ripped out my heart._

Sarah breathes out a deep audible sigh as her emotional wellbeing and his words to her completely overwhelms her.

The husband and wife then pause, as they gaze out into the water and they watch the waves crash into the sand and the sun hidden between the clouds off into the distance.

 _I want to remember him. Oh please, let me remember him!_

"Chuck?" she asks and she waits to continue until he looks at her once more.

"Tell me _our_ story," she says and they smile at each other and she gazes into her husband's warm inviting eyes.

"Yeah, Yeah," he stutters. "Uh, where to begin? Well uh, it started with a guy who worked at Buy More."

A bright smile forms on Sarah's face on hearing his words. _Why do his words make me feel so happy? Why do I feel him_ _in the deepest corner of my heart_ _even though_ _I have no memory of him?_

"And then one day, an old college friend of his sent him an email that was filled with secrets," he pauses. "And then the next day, his life really changed when he met a spy named Sarah," he pauses. "And he fell in love," he declares.

Two tears now begin to fall down her cheeks on hearing his words to him. _Why do I feel so lost,_ _so_ _empty,_ _so_ _half complete,_ _so_ _broken,_ _so_ loved _? I_ _cannot remember_ _ever feeling_ _like this before..._

"So we met at the Buy More?" she asks as she swallows back her emotions.

Chuck grins and nods his head. "Yeah, you walked into the Buy More. I was busy on the phone and Morgan made a joke which caused me to mumble the words to some silly song until I saw you and I dropped the phone because of how breathtakingly beautiful you were, and still are, by the way," he declares with his continued grin.

Sarah laughs on hearing his response. "What was the joke?" she asks.

Chuck winces immediately on hearing his wife's question to him as he recalls back to the joke Morgan had made all those years ago. "Are you sure?" he asks apprehensively.

"Chuck, I want to remember. It's why I asked you," she says with a smile.

Chuck nods his head in acceptance. "Well, uh," he coughs. "Morgan saw you enter the Buy More first, and he said 'Stop the presses' and then he referenced you to a _Batman_ character called Vicki Vale," he admits sheepishly.

Sarah quirks her eyebrows on hearing his comment as she does not catch the reference. "Is it offensive?"

"What?" he pauses to contemplate her question before shaking his head sideways. "No. Vicki Vale is absolutely beautiful and she is also blonde which is why he referenced you. It caused me to mumble a silly song about her, as I hadn't encountered you yet," he admits as he feels quite immature on looking back at himself five years ago, he has came a long way. _His_ Sarah has made him a better person.

"What happened then?" she asks with a smirk.

"Then I fixed your cell phone that you came into the Buy More with as an excuse to meet me for your job. You began to engage in some small talk slash flirting but we were interrupted by a father and his daughter," he pauses for a moment to smile at her and she gives him one back. "It turned out that the father had filmed his daughter's ballerina performance on his video recorder but he didn't have tape as he thought it was digital so I helped him out because I felt bad for the poor girl and her dad and I wanted to make their lives a bit better and to help in any way that I could." he admits truthfully.

A bright smile forms on Sarah's face on hearing his words as she gazes at her husband and her heart begins to fill up with warmth and affection as she begins to paint the picture inside of her brain that her husband is describing to her.

"So you abandoned talking to me in favour of helping a little girl and her distraught father?" she asks him with her continued smile and he nods his head affirmatively.

"That was sweet of you," she says as she begins to feel her heartstrings pull. "Many men would have been focused on trying to get the girl's number who was flirting with him."

"Heh, well I'm not many men, Sarah," he says sincerely and pauses briefly.

 _Clearly. I can't recall a single man that I've ever known in my life that would have done that._

"As much as I wanted to talk to you I did feel you were out of my league. But even if I didn't feel that way, I'd have still gone off and helped them. That's just who I am I guess," he admits with a continued grin.

Sarah swallows hard on hearing his words. She has never quite met a guy like Chuck Bartowski before. That much is certain.

"Was the girl a good dancer?" she asks with a loving smile.

"Sarah, she was great. Everybody in the store loved it including you, well all except Harry Tang."

"Who's that?" she asks with a quirked eyebrow as she tries to recall this mysterious Harry Tang whom she has heard of for the first time in her lost memory.

"Oh another Buy More employee at the time. A real pain in the ass, excuse my French," he laughs and Sarah joins in the laughter along with him.

"You know, after we got together for real much later on in our story, you told me that you fell for me after I fixed your phone and before I started diffusing bombs with computer viruses which was when I helped the little ballerina." he admits.

On hearing his words to her, a bright sparkle begins to form inside Sarah's eye. _I can see why I did. Why can't I remember this heart warming moment? Screw you Graham for recruiting me into the CIA and for robbing me of this powerful memory!_

"Then what happened?" she asks.

"After the performance, I was interrupted on my way back to you by the very same man who proceeded to grill me for using up precious Buy More time on the poor girl and her dad."

Hearing his words causes her to shake her head in disbelief. "Wow, what a total douche."

Chuck nods his head. "Yeah. So then by the time I got back to the Nerd Herd, you were gone. But you had left me your card."

A smile forms on Sarah's face as she continues to paint a picture of her husband's words to her. "Did you call me?" she asks inquisitively.

Chuck shakes his head no. "No," he laughs to her.

"Why not?" She asks as she begins to pout. Now undeniably feeling disappointed that he hadn't called her.

Chuck chuckles for a brief moment at his wife's question to him. "Um, because you're beautiful. And I thought you were so far out of my league for a nerdy guy like me working at a Buy More. You came back the next day. Somebody had broken into my home the previous night and had smashed up my computer which turned out to be you."

On hearing his declaration, Sarah emits a suppressed chuckle at the revelation. "Sorry,"

A grin forms on Chuck's face as he continues on with their story. "I had a headache from hell and I had my head in my hands at the Nerd Herd desk when you rang the bell."

"I remember that," she admits to him with a bright smile now formed.

On hearing his wife's words, a wide grin forms on Chuck's face. "You do?" he asks with renewed hope.

"Only the bell," she admits with a sympathetic smile. "I don't remember anything else though. When I came to the Buy More looking for help to take out Quinn, there was just something about the bell that seemed so familiar and I became so fixated on it trying to remember something that seemed so familiar to me."

Chuck lowers his head in sadness for a brief moment as it would have been her first actual memory of him if she would have remembered him at the Buy More desk with his head in his hands. "I see. So anyway, you had came back because I didn't call you."

A wide smile forms on Sarah's face. "I don't take no for an answer," she admits.

Chuck begins to chuckle once more. "Oh Sarah, I know that. I know everything about you. You're my wife," he admits with a wide loving grin.

"You know a thousand times more about me than I do about myself right now, Chuck," Sarah admits.

A sad frown forms on Chuck's face on hearing his wife's admission to him. "So anyway, I asked you if you had phone trouble again and you told me that you weren't able to receive calls because you never got one for me. Heh."

On hearing his latest revelation, Sarah bursts into hysterical laughter on hearing her chat up line and Chuck joins in with his wife.

"That was a good line. I'm quite proud of that," she says mid laughter.

Chuck nods his head in complete agreement. "Yeah, it was. Even Morgan loved that one as he was standing in the vicinity. So then we went out on a date after Morgan had told you that my schedule was wide open. Sadly it wasn't a real date which I was about to find out." he admits.

Yet another smile forms on Sarah's face. "What happened on our date?" she inquires with great interest.

"We headed to a club and you told me that you'd just gotten out of a bad relationship and that you came with baggage and I told you I could be your very own baggage handler," He admits sheepishly as a huge grin forms on his face on thinking back to that moment shared with his wife five years ago.

Sarah shakes her head with a wide smile now present on her own face. "You didn't?!" she asks gobsmacked.

"I did," he chuckles shamefully, nodding his head affirmatively.

On hearing her husband's words, Sarah starts to giggle for a brief moment.

he continues, "Sadly it didn't last long because we were rudely interrupted by an NSA hit team led by John Casey who had orders to eliminate you and to keep me alive until they found out what I knew. You protected me and took out the hit team like the amazing Sarah you are and then we fled. I had no idea what the hell was going on and I had never been more confused in my life." he admits.

Sarah laughs once more on hearing the latest part of their story.

"You then revealed yourself to be CIA and you told me all about Bryce Larkin. I knew him too by the way, I was with him at Stanford until he had me kicked out," he says with a bit of venom still attached to his tone.

Hearing her husband's latest revelations causes a sudden feeling of anger for Sarah on hearing that somebody had done something to her husband.

 _Bryce did that to my husband? What else has he done to him?_

"Bryce did that to you?" she asks in disbelief.

Chuck nods his head. "Yeah, but more on that later. It's a long story. Trust me."

Sarah smiles warmly at his words to her. "Chuck, I have time. I turned down Beckman's offer along with you so as of now, I am unemployed and I have nothing in my life that I remember so I have all the time in the world," she admits glumly over the present mess that is the life of Sarah Lisa Bartowski.

Chuck smiles sympathetically at his wife's admissions. "Sarah, you have me. I hope you remember me one day. And if you allow me then I will fight for you every single day until you do," he declares powerfully with absolute conviction.

Sarah's warm smile continues on hearing her husband's reassurances to her. _I hope I remember. I want to remember_ _you._

Chuck then continues on with their story on his wife staying silent. "So then after finding out you were CIA we headed to a rooftop for extraction when Casey showed up. You were pointing guns at each other and at me before I revealed that I had the intersect in my head and that I could see abnormal things. I then revealed that there was a bomb set to go off to kill General Stanfield. You and Casey then both put your differences aside for the greater good and our newly formed team then headed to diffuse our first of many bombs together. However, none of us knew how to diffuse it, not even the intersect in my head but then Morgan phoned me up and it triggered something in my brain because Morgan's own computer had fell victim to the Irene Demova virus, and I proceeded to disarm the bomb by uploading the computer virus onto the prism express laptop after you had persuaded Casey to let me do it."

"So that's how I remember the virus. We had already done it together," she states as a smile forms on her face once more.

Chuck nods his head and a grin forms on his face on hearing his wife's words. "Yeah, we had."

"After that, I spent the night at the beach, this exact same beach. You had been watching me all night and this is where you told me to trust you."

Sarah nods her head. _That's why it's important. I was his protector._ "What happened to us after the beach?"

"You and Casey began to protect me. Though you were always at each others throats for a while and you didn't trust each other. I wanted the intersect out of my head desperately so that I could go back to my normal life. I wasn't a spy. I was just a nerdy guy with a lousy job," he admits sadly.

"That must have been hard for you," Sarah replies sympathetically to her husband's words.

Chuck nods his head. "It was, but Sarah, you made it ok. Being with you kept me sane. You were the best handler that they could ever have sent me," he declares lovingly.

Sarah smiles warmly on hearing her husband's words once more.

"I can't tell you every single mission or we would be here for months so I'll skip through most of them quickly. Our second big mission together was concerning an NSA doctor called Zarnow. You and Casey had arranged to see if he could get the secrets out of my head. I wanted them gone but I was disappointed that I wouldn't get to see you again," he declares and he grins at his wife, which she returns.

"He then ran all kinds of tests on me but he faked his own death and it turned out that he was a rogue operative and he had been selling secrets to North Korea."

"Was he apprehended?" she asks inquisitively. She may not be a spy any more. But she will always love a good spy story.

"Yeah. You and Casey both suspected each other and you both tried to convince me that you had each killed him and I didn't know who to trust. It led to you getting captured by Zarnow who was planning to torture you to find out about me. I helped Casey to find and rescue you, only I got caught in the process. I was then in the process of being ex-filtrated by helicopter but I took control of it."

A look of amazement forms on Sarah's face on hearing his storytelling. "You flew a helicopter?"

Chuck's grin continues on his face and he nods his head. "With your help, yeah. You were very comforting and guided me down. On touching down you were very angry with me though," he admits.

Sarah quirks her eyebrow. "Why?" she asks.

"Because I hadn't trusted you. It was just so hard with Casey also in my ear. We made up though after me apologizing for my behaviour. On our next mission we apprehended an international arms smuggler called La Ciudad."

Another look of amazement forms on Sarah's face. "We took La Ciudad out?"

Chuck nods his head. "Yeah, it was a woman. We were the A Team, Sarah," he declares with a wide grin.

A wide smile forms on Sarah's face once more on hearing her husband's latest words.

"But then things got rocky for us again. Your friend Carina was back in town." he admits.

"You've met her?" She enquires with yet more amazement upon learning things that had been forcibly suppressed.

Chuck nods his head. "Yeah, a few times. She was a bridesmaid at our wedding," he pauses on a very sore topic.

Sarah smiles sympathetically on hearing her husband's words and she touches his arm briefly with her hand. "What happened to us?" she asks.

"Carina wanted us to steal a diamond and she used and played us all. She tried to seduce me and she told me that she liked taking what you wanted, even if you didn't know it yourself yet. It was actually the first real sign for me that you felt something real for me. She also told me that you and Bryce were together before he went rogue which caused me to lose my trust in you once more," Chuck admits.

Anger begins to form inside of Sarah and she feels her blood start to boil on learning about her friend's betrayal of her. _Bitch!_

"Anyway, we went on our mission together and we got back the diamond. But Carina made me hand it over to her and she escaped leaving us trapped and Casey had to rescue and bail us out. Casey then went after Carina in the hunt for the diamond and she hid it in Morgan's bag who had shown up as he had the hots for her as you had decided to introduce him to her," he says as he begins to chuckle and Sarah begins to snort on hearing what she'd done.

"I found the diamond and I phoned you but you had been captured by the man we were sent to get it from. Carina then showed up demanding the diamond but I convinced her to help you instead."

Sarah quirks her eyebrow on hearing her husband's words. "Carina always thinks of herself. How did you convince her?" she asks inquisitively.

Chuck shrugs his shoulders non-nonchalantly . "I don't know. I appealed to her emotions and to her feelings I guess," he says with a wide grin.

 _My husband can make CARINA feel emotions? Wow, he really is good! You found a good one, Sarah!_

"Anyway, we rescue you and post mission I come to your hotel room to discuss my latest trust issues over what Carina had said about Bryce. I brought you a vegetarian pizza with no olives, as it was the only thing I knew about you that was real," he admits with a sad smile.

Sarah smiles sympathetically on hearing his admission. _Poor guy. I must have hurt him for a long time in not letting him in. But it was my job._

"I asked you if you could tell me something real about yourself, such as your real name or where you grew up or even your middle name. You remained silent and I gave up and went to get napkins, only for you to tell me your middle name was Lisa after I'd walked away," he says with a wide grin formed on his face once more.

"So if you'd walked away, how did you find out?" she inquires very interestedly.

"You told me what you had done after we'd gotten together for real," he admits. "Our next big mission was turning a Chinese agent and making her defect because her brother had been taken by triads. I screwed up the mission somehow like I seem to do a lot," he chuckles briefly. "But I made up for it and we complete the mission and she successfully defects. In doing so, I repeatedly broke my promises with Morgan and Ellie and I hurt them both by lying and deceiving to them. The government and spying and the lies from it were already coming between my new life, and my real family life. I missed mothers day with Ellie while on this mission. Mothers day for me and El was the day that my mom walked out on us and that mission got in the way of that," he admits with a sad smile.

Sarah moves to touch his arm once more and she begins to feel deep sorrow for him. "I'm so sorry. That must have been a hard moment in your life."

Chuck nods his head. "It was, but you made it better," He admits and the husband and wife share an affectionate smile once more.

"Anyway, another mission passes of Team Bartowski saving the day until we get to our next big relationship moment together. You took a picture together with me at my sister's home. You wanted me to have something of us that was real," he reveals.

Sarah breathes out a deep sigh on hearing his words. _A_ _fter all of the hurt and turmoil in his life. At least I could give him something_ _of me that was_ _real._

"I'm glad you had something real of me," she says with a warm smile.

"Me too," Chuck admits with a loving grin. "Soon after I was forced to reconnect with my old life and I went back to Stanford and I learnt the real reason of why I got kicked out of Stanford."

"Which was?" Sarah inquires deeply interested in learning all about the man she's spent five years of her life with once more.

"My professor at Stanford was forwarding me as a recruit for the CIA. Bryce didn't want me there as he didn't think I would survive in the field as an agent. So he planted evidence in my dorm that had me guilty of cheating and I got kicked out which is why I ended up at the Buy More, and not be running my own tech company."

Another tear begins to leave her eye on hearing her husband's words. "I'm sorry Bryce did that to you."

"It wasn't the only thing Bryce did to mess up my life. But more on that later. On our next mission we were out fake double dating with Ellie and Awesome and Ellie comes across a very sick person. It later turns out he'd been infected by a toxic derivative of pentothal. You took comments that Devon had made to you about our fake relationship seriously and you told me it was time for us to make love," he reveals with a wide grin.

Sarah begins to snort with laughter on hearing Chuck's comments. "So, did we?" she then asks with a cheeky smile. _I hope we did._

Chuck shakes his head no. _"_ No, we broke up," he admits.

Sarah begins to frown once more. "Huh?" she asks, now feeling rather undeniably disappointed once more.

"Events escalated and Ellie ended up getting poisoned herself with pentothal, and subsequently ourselves. I obtained just one vial of antidote and you and Casey tried to have me use it on myself but I ran off and used it on Ellie as she was in a coma and she was about to die."

Sarah involuntarily moves to shrug her shoulder on hearing what a hero her husband is. _You found a keeper, Sarah!_

"Anyway, we then went looking for more antidotes for ourselves and we obtained it. I didn't let you take yours yet though because It was my only chance to find out if what we had could ever be real and not just a cover."

"But I'm trained to withstand pentothal," Sarah interrupts his story telling.

Chuck chuckles for a moment as he nods his head in agreement. "I know that now. You told me later on when things were more clearer between us. But at the time, I didn't know. And thinking our relationship would never go anywhere because you told me yourself, I broke up with you," he admits with a sympathetic smile.

On hearing her husband's admission, Sarah feels a tear in her eye once more.

"I'm sorry again about that by the way. I can't imagine how that must have felt me doing that to you knowing you couldn't tell me how you truly felt." he says remorsefully.

 _I can. Because I can feel it right now. I can imagine how I must have felt at the time. Knowing that I'd fallen for you, and being unable to tell you. Having to lie to you. And then you breaking up with me because I had lied and said that we could never have had anything._

"What happened next? _"_ Sarah asks depressively after Chuck's revelation had now caused her to feel sorrow.

"I entered a relationship with another girl called Lou," he admits to his wife.

Sarah quirks her eyebrow on hearing his response.

"But it didn't work out or last very long at all. One of our missions came between the relationship as her ex boyfriend was a target of our mission and everything just began to spiral out of control. I was in the club getting close to our target and you came in after me worried that he would hurt me. You told me later on that Casey had pulled you and had said you had fallen for me which is why you rushed in to my aid once I was threatened. We find out that Lou's ex boyfriend was involved in all kinds of criminal dealings and we end up being captured on a dock together. Casey rescued us and we escaped to find a container. On opening it, it appeared to be some kind of bomb. I couldn't flash on it and so you ordered me to run. It turned out later that the bomb was fake though."

"What did you do?" she inquires with a wide smile.

"I refused to leave you in a moment of courage and you pulled out your gun on me," Chuck admits with a chuckle.

"I didn't!" she says as she shakes her head in disbelief on learning what she did all those years ago.

"Oh yes you did!" Chuck laughs back to her.

"So I was going to shoot you to stop you from getting blown up?" Sarah asks as she begins to laugh deeply.

"That's exactly what I said to you. Did you remember?" Chuck asks hopeful.

Sarah shakes her head no sympathetically. "No, we must just think alike. Or maybe I can _subconsciously_ remember it like the virus and the bell," she says with a warm smile to him. "What happened then?"

"The timer kept ticking and we thought we were about to die so that's when _you_ kissed me," he declares.

"What was it like?" she asks with a bright smile and she stares into her husband's eyes as a fire begins building up inside her as she begins to imagine herself kissing Chuck.

"It was the best kiss and the best moment of my life, Sarah. You attacked me with such an intense passion. I felt violated" he says with a wide grin which causes Sarah to snort with laughter on hearing his words.

"What about you? Did you attack me?" she asks with her continued formed smile of happiness caused by hearing _their_ story.

"Oh you bet I did," he chuckles gleefully. "But I was so confused with mixed signals because of what had happened to us with the pentothal and then after our kiss there was a lot of pretending from you that it didn't happen and it was one of the hardest periods of my life as I didn't know how to deal with it." he admits.

 _I did a lot to this poor guy. He didn't deserve any of this. I shouldn't have led and played with his feelings like this for so long. I would have known that assets and handlers could not have personal relationships._

"And then Bryce Larkin resurfaced alive once more. It turns out that he was inside the bomb."

"Jesus!" Sarah gasps in complete shock at her husband's revelation as her mind adds Bryce Larkin into the picture of the bomb and her husband that she had painted.

Chuck nods his head. "I know right. I didn't find out about that as I had already left but you and Casey did, and then we all had one big reunion inside of a CIA medical facility. It turned out that Bryce wasn't rogue and that he was working undercover against a rogue CIA organization known as Fulcrum. I also seen you making out with him in my room," he admits.

Sarah gasps and she begins to find it difficult to look at him in shame. "Oh Chuck, I'm sorry. That is a disgraceful thing," she says shamefully.

"It's okay," Chuck says with a loving smile.

Sarah shakes her head no. "No Chuck, it's not. That must have hurt you."

"It did," he admits and he pauses for the briefest of moments. "But you shown how you really felt towards me almost immediately after. Bryce was going back undercover, and he invited you with him by telling you that you'd have Omaha. I was sure that you'd go with him and I phoned you a lot that evening but you didn't answer. Anyway, the next day you turned up and you chose to stay with me and not go with Bryce," he says with a huge grin formed on his face.

A bright smile forms on Sarah's face on hearing the latest part of their story. _Good girl, Sarah! Bryce could never have offered me what Chuck has already told me. My relationship with_ _Bryce_ _was nothing like this one that is now being described_ _to me._

"Our relationship was far from being steady yet though. It was still strained and it didn't help when I lost one hundred thousand dollars at roulette thinking it was one hundred dollars and they had to send you instead."

Sarah bursts into laughter once more.

"You had to get close to some bad guy and I became extremely jealous and kind of hurt," he admits.

"Chuck, seduction missions mean nothing on a personal aspect. It's just a way to get information," she says reassuringly.

Chuck nods his head. "I know, Sarah, but it hurt me."

Sarah suddenly begins to feel like a little schoolgirl being scolded by a teacher on hearing his blunt sincerity to her and she averts her eyes away from her husband in shame.

"Our relationship recovered at the end of the mission and we agreed to remain friends and you continued to pretend like the kiss didn't happen and you said it was a mistake at the time."

"Wow, I really hurt you early on, didn't I?" she asks sympathetically.

"Sarah, I hurt you too. I also did some things and besides, it wasn't easy for you. I was just an asset, you were an agent and you had a duty to protect me. I could have been more considerate of your situation and stopped trying to press you at every juncture and opportunity," he says compassionately. "Our next mission was mostly helping Casey with a former lover of his."

"Casey had a lover?" Sarah asks him gobsmacked.

"Oh yes, and you won't believe what she used to call him as an endearment," he grins.

"What was it?" Sarah asks with intense anticipation.

"Sugar bear," he says with a huge grin.

Sarah bursts into roaring laughter on hearing his words. "No way!" she says in disbelief.

"I had the same reaction as you and I confronted him about it and he almost strangled me to death against a wall in a fit of rage. My throat still hurts," he jokes as he shows his wife the motion of being choked by his friend all those years ago.

Anger immediately begins building up inside of Sarah once more on hearing his revelation. _Somebody hurt my husband?_

"Who was his lover?"

"It turned out she was some kind of French spy. I can't remember what as it's been so many years," Chuck admits. "I tried to help Casey get her back as a friend."

 _He's such a heart warming, kind and compassionate guy. He didn't deserve this life he now lives. To have a wife as a spy that can't even remember anything about him._

"Some time then passes and Fulcrum were getting real close to me. I discovered a bug at the Buy More that wasn't one of yours or Casey's and things got very serious. I can't remember how many but there were a lot of short range bugs that were found inside the Buy More and you and Casey told me that if the receiver wasn't recovered then I would be taken into protective custody."

"Wow! Things really did get serious." she admits.

"Yeah. I managed to identify the fulcrum agent responsible for planting the bugs but it was too late. The CIA had already ordered that I be taken into protective custody."

"What stopped you from being taken in?"

"I was waiting on a rooftop for extraction with a CIA agent. Much like on our first cover date when you appeared on the roof top."

A smile forms on Sarah's face. "I stopped him from taking you in?"

"No," Chuck admits. "You looked like you were about to though. I just seen that look in your eye that I have seen a few times in the years gone by. You looked like a wrecking ball. You asked Longshore to give you a few minutes with me. You told him that I was your guy," another smile forms on Sarah's face on hearing the latest part to their story. "It's also the first real time that we had actually talked about how we really felt about each other. Though I did all of the talking really, as you were an emotional mess," he says as he begins to chuckle.

Tears begin to stream down Sarah's already wet face once more. "What did we talk about?"

"Among other things that I can't remember, I told you that maybe there was a silver lining to me being taken in. I wouldn't be your asset any more. So we could date for real. I told you that you could come by my cell and we could hang out and you could tell me who the president was," he says to her with a wide grin.

On hearing his admission, Sarah begins to laugh deeply for a long moment.

 _Screw you, Quinn! Screw you, CIA, for making me lose my memories of my husband!_

"Then the Fulcrum agent appeared and took out Longshore and there was a struggle between you and her. You managed to neutralize her because of the kickass Sarah that you are and the day ended with us searching for an engagement ring for several hours for Devon and Ellie that we had been looking for, for several days. We stood at the window to Ellie's apartment and watched as Devon proposed and my sister became engaged," he says with a bright smile.

On hearing his latest words, a huge smile erupts on Sarah's face as she imagines and plays out the scenario that he has just described inside her mind.

"What happened with the protective custody?"

"You told me it had been cancelled and that I was safe for now. I asked you to come inside to congratulate Ellie, but you told me it was a family moment. I told you I knew, because you were already my life," he declares powerfully.

 _And I wish I could remember you being mine, Chuck..._

"Some time then passed, and I was finally about to be able to return to my normal life as the government's new intersect was due to go online. The first thing I wanted to do in my plans for the future was to ask you on a real date, which you accepted," he says with a huge grin and a bright smile forms on Sarah's face.

"How was it?" she asks as she tries so desperately hard to remember this moment shared with her husband all those years ago.

"It was perfect," he admits with a wide grin. "But we didn't get to enjoy it as people were waiting to capture and apprehend us."

"Wow, we had nothing going our way, did we?" Sarah asks with a sad smile on hearing about Chuck and her own's misfortunes.

"Tell me about it," Chuck sighs deeply in agreement with his wife.

"Then what?" she asks enthusiastically as she is really enjoying recalling the past few years of her life with the man that she cannot remember marrying.

"Then Graham was blown up and the new intersect destroyed. My life went back to how it was. I was still the only working intersect. We could no longer date and you told me we couldn't be together as it was unprofessional and the frustration began to build once more as I went from having life plans with you, to back at working at the Buy More."

"Wow, you went back there?" she asks amazed.

"That place just didn't want to let me go," he grins.

Sarah laughs sweetly on hearing his words.

"I was then sent on my first seduction mission," he reveals.

Sarah quirks an eyebrow. _That doesn't sound like the_ _C_ _huck of_ _our story._

"I had to get advice from Roan Montgomery on seduction. He stirred me up into kissing you to see what I was capable of," he admits.

Sarah begins to laugh hard once more for a long moment. "How did he do that?"

"He wound me up by saying that a guy like me could never get a woman like you interested in me."

 _I vehemently disagree. I already feel an attraction to you just from however long we've been here. You're an easily approachable and funny guy._

"You interjected and said I was passionate, sweet and caring and you said I had a lot to offer. Which caused Roan to demand that you kiss me to see that passion," he says with a chuckle for a long moment and Sarah begins to laugh hysterically once more.

"How was this kiss? As good as our first?" she inquires as she feels a fire build up inside of herself for him once more.

"Better," Chuck admits. "I wish you could remember it, Sarah," he says dejectedly to her.

"Me too," Sarah concedes as she stares sympathetically into her husband's eyes.

"He also kind of told me about the Montgomery which was a white dinner jacket, a bottle of wine and a single red rose I think. Though I regret hearing that stupid suggestion of his now."

Sarah quirks her eyebrow once more. "Why, didn't it work?" she asks. _I don't think I would have been able to turn him down if he shown up like that. I was obviously already immensely attracted to him based on everything he's told me._

"I will never know because I did as he suggested and I turned up at your hotel room, only for Bryce freaking Larkin to open the door with you. I have never felt so embarrassed as that day," he admits.

"Bryce was inside my hotel room?" she asks as she begins to feel slightly sick inside. _What was he doing in there? I was obviously in a committed relationship with Chuck already, even if we couldn't tell each other how we felt._

"Yeah," Chuck admits and he coughs on the sore topic. "Our mission with Roan had just ended. I had saved you outside the Buy More from my mark who was a ruthless KGB operative and had taken you hostage. I leapt off the top of the Buy More roof and swung down on some kind of banner and kicked right into her. I was quite proud of that one!" he declares and begins to chuckle at the fond memory he had just recalled.

Sarah laughs hard for a long moment on hearing her husband's words. "No way!" she says with immense pride and respect and affinity on hearing he had saved her.

"Anyway, I arrived at your room and there was Bryce. I hated life and wanted the ground to swallow me whole. I thought I had lost you to him again."

"But you didn't?" she asks hopeful. _You better not have. You already did so much more and gave me more than Bryce ever could._

"No. He was back in town for a mission. You were injured during it and I visited you at the hospital. I was dismayed at how many flowers Bryce had bought compared to just a bunch of gardenias from me. I said no matter what I did I would always come second best to him," he reveals.

"What did I say?" she asks in strong anticipation.

"You said 'not always'."

A smile then forms on Sarah's face once more. _Good girl._

"Bryce then confronted me. And he said that your feelings for me would get you killed," he reveals.

On hearing his latest revelation, shock begins to fill up on Sarah's face. She feels angry that somebody else was making a decision for her and telling her who she could and could not like. "What did you say?" she asks.

"I said you knew what you were doing. But then something else happened in the final part of the mission. Somebody had me at gunpoint and you had the target in your sights. Bryce was imploring you to take the shot," he reveals.

 _Hmm. Like Bogota with Bryce._

"Did I?" she asks inquisitively.

Chuck shakes his head no. "No. You couldn't do it and you were extremely hesitant and panicky."

On hearing his revelation, Sarah flings a hand over her mouth as she begins to gasp over the implications of his words.

"I had fallen for you and I couldn't risk shooting you instead in case I lost you," Sarah admits to him.

Chuck nods his head in agreement. "Yeah, that was my interpretation, as well as Bryce and Casey's who were also present."

"So what happened then?"

"Then I took Bryce's advice and I broke your heart to try and protect you and keep you safe. I couldn't ever let anything happen to you," he says with a sympathetic smile on seeing Sarah's face fill up with sorrow and hurt.

"What did you say?" she asks depressively.

"I told you we could never have a future together because as amazing as you are, you would never be normal."

"How did I take it?" _If it's anything like what I'm feeling right now on hearing this, then I'd say heartbroken._

"You took it really bad I could feel it. It wasn't one of my best moments in our relationship," he admits shamefully.

"Please tell me our story gets better." Sarah says apprehensively with a look of concern now present on her face.

"Oh it does," he says with a bright grin. "Though I did two more bad moments later on that was worse than this. But next up in our life, I met Jenny Burton."

Sarah looks at him anxiously. "You saw my childhood?"

Chuck grins deeply. "Oh yes. We attended your high school reunion together. It had all came about when Heather Chandler sighted you at the Buy More. She followed you into the Orange, Orange where you worked as cover. I wanted to know everything about you, which is kind of a contradiction because I had recently only just told you that you would never be real and we could never have a future. But I carried on prying and prying until you snapped at me," he admits.

"What did I do?" she asks him with a smirk.

"You threw a pencil at a framed photograph of ours and said something like 'All Jenny's boyfriend needs to know is that she hates being asked questions of her past'"

Chuck then watches on as a wide grin begins to form on his wife's face.

"You're still proud of that, huh?" he asks her with his own continued grin.

Sarah laughs and nods her head on hearing his question.

"That still scares me, even till this day. I was so awed how you did that. We then went on a double date with Heather and her husband, Mark Ratner and you spilt wine on me when I tried to pry into your past and to learn more about you."

Sarah laughs once more and she takes a long moment as she begins to think back to her childhood.

"Heather Chandler married Mark Ratner?" Sarah then asks in shock and disbelief.

"Yeah. I can't really recall why now, but I think it was to further the purpose of her needs," he reveals.

Sarah nods her head strongly in agreement with her husband's words. "That sounds like her. She always was conniving like that. So what happened at the reunion?"

"Everything, Sarah. Firstly, you knocked out Dick Duffy for trying to flirt with you." he says and he begins to chuckle.

Sarah begins to snort with laughter on hearing her husband's revelation.

"Team Bartowski had believed that Mark Ratner was in league with the Russian mob over blueprints for something he had designed. But it was revealed that it was in fact Heather, who was connected to the mob and she planned to kill him and steal the blueprints."

"Ok, now that definitely is Heather! What happened to her?" she asks.

"You beat her down," Chuck says with pride.

Sarah smiles on hearing his response. _That bitch_ _had that coming._

"She's now in a federal penitentiary and you were crowned reunion queen," he says with his continued wide Bartowski grin.

"No way!" Sarah laughs to him in disbelief.

"Yes way, it happened," he grinned. "I then went back to your hotel room and you told me that I had earnt one question about your past and you would answer it."

"What did you ask me?" she asks with strong anticipation as she excitedly waits to hear what she had told him.

"I didn't. I said I didn't need to know anything about your past, because as much as you didn't think so, I knew who you were. I told you that you were a girl I wanted to share a cheeseburger with," he says and on finishing he begins to chuckle.

Sarah begins to laugh once more. _He's so funny._ _I like him. I like him a lot._

"I still believe what I said even to this day, by the way," he smiles. "Sadly though, our relationship hit a rock once more."

Sarah instantly begins to feel yet more dread on hearing her husband's words. _Just how much more hurt did we have in our lives before we_ _officially_ _got together?_

"My old girlfriend from when I was at Stanford was back in town. Oh, I also graduated thanks to you and Casey. I was twelve credits shy of graduation when Bryce had me expelled, but you and Casey got me my diploma, so thank you again for that. Anyway, I regressed. My ex girlfriend Jill had came back and Beckman ordered me to reconnect with her."

"Is she somebody I need to be jealous of?" Sarah asks as she begins to glare at Chuck as a feeling of jealously and protectiveness of Chuck immediately hits and forms deep inside of her.

"What? No!" Chuck shoots back quickly as he sees a jealous Sarah come back to life that instantly reminds him of a few previous occasions he had seen his wife glare at him like that. "I have only ever dated another woman because I felt like I could never have you and that our relationship would not lead anywhere. Sarah, if I never get you back after what has now happened to you then I probably won't ever look at another woman ever again," he admits.

 _Then we'll have to make sure that you get me back. Because you're too nice to be single._

"Besides, _you_ told me to reconnect with her," he reveals.

Sarah quirks her eyebrow. "Why on earth would I do that?" she asks in complete disbelief.

"Because you told me it would give me closure," he admits. "Anyway, I go on the forced date with Jill. And we kind of begin dating for real again," he squeals as he sees frustration begin to build on Sarah's face and she glares at him once more.

"That look you're giving me right now is similar to the one all those years ago," Chuck admits. "It was wrong and I'm not going to excuse myself. I should never have gotten back with her. But I just wanted a normal life. I wanted a girlfriend that could love me at that exact moment in time. I was lonely," he confesses.

"What about how lonely I was, Chuck? Knowing how I felt about you but unable to act on it because of my job in the CIA?" Sarah asks as she begins to feel hurt and betrayal over something that happened several years ago because she now remembers it freshly once more.

"You're right. And I was kind of a douche back then. But it turned out she was Fulcrum, Sarah. And there was a moment when she was about to kill you and I saw it and I had her locked up and arrested because I could never let anything happen to you," he declares powerfully. "Sarah, we had some bad moments in our life. Not gonna dispute that. But what couple doesn't? The good far, FAR outweighs the bad. If it weren't for the CIA, none of this would have happened. So I blame them," he admits with strong malice.

Sarah nods her head in agreement. "If it weren't for the CIA, I would never have lost my memory. So I know exactly how you feel. Tell me something happier about us," she demands.

"Happy, ok. Good, I can do that!" he grins.

"Let's see… Oh! Your reunions with old people were not done yet."

"Who did you meet next?" Sarah asks in strong anticipation with a wide smile.

"Your dad," he admits.

On hearing her husband's response to her, Sarah begins to cough as she almost chokes and she loses breath on hearing his admission. "You met him?"

"Indeed," Chuck nods his head. "He came back to town for his latest con and we became involved on Beckman's orders and he called me a Schnuck."

Sarah bursts into a fit of laughter once more on hearing her husband's revelations.

"I'm still upset about that," he admits. "But I've forgiven him as he paid for our wedding."

Sarah strongly shakes her head as she gazes at her husband "No way!" she says in complete disbelief.

"It's true. We kind of got conned by our wedding planner and your dad came through massively for us."

"How did we get conned?" Sarah inquires as she begins to recall her fathers words of _once you know all the cons, you can never be a sucker._

"We were too trusting," he admits.

"Wow, you really did change me. Didn't you?" she asks him with a loving smile.

"Sarah, you changed yourself. You learnt how to love and how to trust. You are the most beautiful person I have ever seen," he says emotionally to her.

More tears begin to form in Sarah's eyes on hearing her husband's words to her. She breathes out a deep whimper as his words affect her so deep inside. She moves her hand to affectionately touch his arm for a brief moment.

"So tell me more about why he came back."

Chuck nods his head. "It was a job. He kind of played us and stole ten million from somebody very powerful and he left the money in my bank account. At the end of it he told us both that he had made a ten million bet that I loved you. And I guess he was right. Because I do," he says as he smiles adoringly at his wife.

A bright smile erupts on Sarah's face on hearing her husband's words to her.

"Was that a happy enough memory for you?" he asks.

"Yeah," she says with her continued adoring smile. "Chuck?"

"Yeah? He asks as he gazes at his wife.

"Tell me how we got together and our first time," she demands with her continued adoring smile.

"You don't want to hear about things before then?" Chuck inquires.

Sarah shakes her head no. "Chuck, it's just going to make me sad. And because I can't remember it, I might misjudge the situation. Let's leave out all further sad parts to our story and relive our happy ones."

Chuck nods his head in acceptance of his wife's demands.

"Ok, well bear in mind that we still worked for the CIA so there is some sadness in it. For example: when we became official, I was sitting at my apartment in my shorts with a stupid guitar around me after drinking lots of whisky and eating ice cream because I thought I had lost you and I asked you if you love me and you said yes," he declares with his continued wide grin of happiness as he enjoys telling their story to his wife once more.

"So did we get together that night?" she asks him hopefully as she smiles adoringly at him.

Chuck shakes his head no. "No, we got called on a mission," he admits.

"What was the mission?" she asks.

"There was a CIA agent, called Daniel Shaw. And this is the sad part I spoke about. He was the husband of your red test," Chuck admits and he winces as he sees his wife gasp in immense shock.

"Oh my god!" Sarah says in disbelief as she flings a hand to cover her mouth to try and stem the shock of her husband's declarations to her.

Chuck nods his head. "I know. It was a real shock to us both. And he found out that you had killed his wife and he came so close to killing you but I stopped him. I shot him and I thought I'd killed him but he later resurfaced to haunt us once more."

An adoring smile forms on Sarah's face once more. _He saved me._

"So then what happened?" she inquires in her continued excited frame of mind.

"You woke up in Paris after being drugged by him. And that was our first time," he says with a bright smile, Sarah likewise, has the same facial expressions. "We were official from that moment on. I had panicked because I thought I'd killed Shaw and when you thought I had completed my red test earlier just before all of this you told me I wasn't the same guy that you fell for. But you told me I saved you and then you absolutely blew my mind and I've been smitten by you ever since," he says with a deep loving grin.

Sarah laughs sweetly. "Was it worth the wait?" she inquires as she begins to picture making love with Chuck and tries to desperately remember it.

"Oh yes. We had came so close less than a year earlier," he admits.

"What happened?" she asks as strong excitement to hear _their_ story builds up once more.

"You had orders to bring me in but you turned your back on the CIA, and we ran together. We ended up staying in some crappy motel in Barstow and we woke up in the same bed and we came this close," he says as he shows his wife his fingers.

Sarah frowns on hearing his admission. "What stopped us?" she inquires.

"Morgan freaking Grimes!" Chuck says as he chuckles and shakes his head in disapproval over Morgan's actions on that day he came close to making love with Sarah.

Sarah begins to laugh on hearing his words. "What did he do?"

"Are you sure you want to know?" Chuck asks apprehensively as he doesn't want to scare or spook Sarah away from him if he starts talking about their intimate moments.

Sarah nods her head and she smiles warm and invitingly at him. _I want to remember you,_ _Chuck. I like you._

"We paused so that I could get protection. I always kept one in my wallet but Morgan had replaced it with an iou note."

Sarah shakes her head in disapproval. "That is so not cool."

Chuck nods his head in agreement with his wife. "Tell me about it."

"Do I need to have words and pull him over this?" she asks as she gazes at her husband with a smirk.

"No, we both did afterwards," Chuck admits.

"Good. I can't imagine what that must have been like for us. I still might pull him again. How long had we known each other?"

"Almost two years. But even if we hadn't have been interrupted by that, we would have been anyway. Casey was hunting us and also Fulcrum and I ran them over to protect you from harm."

 _He saved me again._

"And what happened after we got together?" she asks as she begins to vividly paint a picture of her being with Chuck once more.

"We ran away and boarded a train. We certainly made up for lost time as we didn't leave our compartment once," he reveals with a loving smile.

Sarah smirks on hearing his revelation. "Why did we run?"

"We were afraid of losing each other if we remained in the spy life I guess. After so long of wanting each other, we didn't want to lose each other again. We didn't want to go back to how it was before. About nine months earlier and just after Barstow you had already tried to get me to run away with you," he reveals.

"Why didn't you?"

"I wanted to be a spy, Sarah. I did it so that we could be together for real. I wanted to be your equal, to make you love me," he admits as he smiles lovingly at his wife.

"I would have loved you regardless," she interrupts him.

Chuck nods his head. "I know, and it was the biggest mistake of my life. I should have gotten on the train with you and we could have talked about it on the train but instead, I didn't and it broke your heart once more. We met again six months later and it was the most difficult challenge of our relationship and if I could take those nine months back, Sarah, then I would, in an instant!"

"What made us go back to the CIA? Why didn't we leave behind that life for good? I would never have lost my memory then," she asks him despondently.

Chuck smiles sympathetically at his wife's words to him.

"We decided that we wanted to be spies, but also to have each other. We wanted to have our cake and to eat it. And on arriving back in castle, you told Beckman that we were dating, exclusively. I grabbed your hand and Beckman scolded me," Chuck laughs out to his wife.

Sarah begins to gasp on hearing his revelation. "No way! I said that to Beckman?" she asks amazed.

"You sure did," Chuck continues to laugh.

"Was their any more deep angst in our relationship after we became official?"

"Nope," he says with a wide grin which causes a bright smile to form on Sarah's face. "It was smooth sailing from there until the day I married you. It was the happiest day of both of our lives, Sarah," he declares emotionally in a cracked tone of voice as he breaks up and begins to cry because the emotion of what he had just said was too much for the young man.

On seeing him start to cry, Sarah moves her hand to stroke his arm comfortingly. _I can feel_ _his_ _deep grief and sorrow._ _It hurts and pains_ _me_ _so_ _freaking_ _much. I can't remember him, but I can_ _now feel_ _him…_ _I didn't feel anywhere close to this when he told me the story inside of the home with the white picket fence…_ _It must have been because I have reconnected with him emotionally here at the beach for however long we have been out here._

"So what happened to us after we became official?" she says in an attempt to help him out of his grief that he is now experiencing.

"Shaw came back. He killed my dad," he reveals as tears continue to leave his eyes.

"Oh Chuck, I'm so sorry! I wouldn't have asked if I could remember," Sarah says as she moves closer to nestle into the side of him from where they sat.

 _Please don't cry! It suddenly feels like somebody is stabbing me in my heart! I didn't feel as strongly as this before the beach! What is happening to me?_

On recovering from his outburst, they recover back into the positions that the husband and wife have been in for however long they have been out here on this beach together.

"I am scared to ask you something else now, Chuck. In case I say the wrong thing to you," she says sympathetically.

"Sarah, it's ok. I'm just so emotional right now," he says as he smiles lovingly at his wife.

"Chuck, it's understandable. Your wife was taken away from you. You have every right to be hurting. I'm hurting too, Chuck," she declares as she wipes her own wet eyes.

Chuck raises his gaze up from the sand to make eye contact with his wife once more.

 _I want to kiss him right now. Why do I want to comfort him so intimately when I still can't remember anything about him other than what he's told me?_

"So is there anything that you want to ask, about us?" he says.

"Tell me how we got engaged," she says to him with a bright smile. _That isn't a sad topic, surely…._

His loving grin returns to his face once more. "Yeah. Yeah, well I had been planning it for quite some time actually. I found it much easier to express myself than you, which is understandable, because I had only recently became a fully fledged CIA agent, whereas it was all that you knew. So you didn't know how to love," he pauses to smile adoringly at her. "So anyway, I had been working on my proposal plan for how to ask you. I was pulling out all of the stops to make it perfect. Morgan was helping too. But as I was working on it, I got captured and you found the proposal plan in our home."

"What did I do when I found it?" she asks as she smiles warmly at him.

"You tore up half of Thailand coming to rescue me," he says as he begins to laugh deeply causing Sarah to join in it with him.

"You always were my protector. You saved me more times than I can count," he declares affectionately.

"It sounds like you did the same to me too, Chuck," she responds in the same loving tone.

"But not when it mattered most I didn't," He says as his tears threaten him once more.

"What happened once I saved you?" Sarah asks as she diverts the topic once more to provide him with some respite from his depressive thoughts.

"I started the plan all over again and I was preparing to ask you. You kind of helped out with it actually," he admits.

Sarah laughs on hearing his admission. "How?" she inquires as she eagerly awaits his response.

"You found out that I was planning to propose and you tried your best to make it happen. We were at a restaurant together and I had arranged the full works from balloons to flowers to a horse carriage. I had even arranged champagne and a string quartet," he laughs.

Sarah laughs deeply. "That sounds perfect," she admits with a bright smile.

"I thought so too. I came literally within seconds of asking you as I already had the ring box open in my hand when you told me something."

"I told you about my parents nightmare proposal?" she offers with her continued adoring smile on picturing the moment that Chuck has just described to her.

"Yes you did," he laughs out to her causing Sarah to snort in return.

"I immediately freaked out and cancelled the whole thing. I've never felt more anxious," he admits with a wide grin.

"Sorry," Sarah says sheepishly and she laughs a suppressed laugh.

"I then started it all over again once more and attempted to find a new location. And then we were on a mission in a French vineyard and it was so beautiful. And that's when I became convinced that it was the perfect spot. I must have came close to proposing half a dozen times on that day but I was rudely interrupted by Casey each time. This is when you found out and you did all you could to make it happen," he admits with his continued grin.

"That sounds like me," Sarah admits as the husband and wife share laughter together. "So, did it happen?"

"No," he admits. "I was within seconds of proposing once again but we were arrested. It later turned out that the whole thing was a setup to cement your cover."

Sarah quirks her eyebrows. "My cover for what?"

"You were going deep undercover against Volkoff Industries, which is how we eventually came into our wealth by the way. But anyway, you wanted to rescue my mom for me. You probably wanted to make up for what caused our first real fight as a committed couple in where you had her arrested."

"Wow. We certainly didn't have it easy did we, Chuck?" Sarah laughs.

"No, we didn't. But I wouldn't trade any of it for a single second though. It has all been worth it. Because I got to love you, and you got to love me," he declares emotionally in a cracked tone of voice.

 _I want to love you again. You sound absolutely perfect to me. I already feel deep emotions towards you just from hearing our perfect story and the life that we have shared together._

"So, where did your proposal actually happen?" she asks with a bright smile.

Chuck grins on hearing her question. "I eventually ended up asking you in the hospital when Ellie had just given birth to her daughter. And you didn't even need to say yes because we knew we would spend the rest of our lives together," he declares as the husband and wife make intimate eye contact together.

"Wow, after all that trouble you went through we got engaged in a hospital?" she asks him with a bright smile.

Chuck nods his head and he begins to chuckle for a brief moment and Sarah smiles at him. "Yeah, it sounds plain but I had came within seconds of doing it first in the restaurant and then numerous times on that beautiful balcony. I couldn't wait any longer," he admits.

"I'm so, so sorry that I can't remember it, Chuck," she says as tears drip out of her eyes. "You don't deserve this to happen to you."

"Neither do you, Sarah," he declares as they connect emotionally together.

"What happened to Bryce, Chuck?" Sarah then asks.

"He died. For real this time. Just after Barstow and just before you wanted me to run. I had uploaded the newest intersect that came with all kinds of powerful abilities. It was meant for Bryce. It's why you wanted me to run, it would have changed me. Bryce wanted you to leave with him on a new mission. You told me at my sisters wedding that you were leaving but then afterwards Bryce told me that you weren't going to go with him. And you were going to stay with me, to pursue a normal life with me being intersectless and safe. But if I hadn't have uploaded it, we would have all died. So I don't regret that."

"Wow, Chuck. Our life together was explosive," Sarah admits as she begins to feel quite mind blown on his latest revelation over their life that they have shared together.

"It was," he admits. "Is there anything else you want to know about our life?"

"What happened to me to make me forget all of this?" she asks him as she stares into her husband's eyes.

"Sarah, I don't know if I can go through it again. For either of us," he admits as he becomes deeply emotional once more.

"Chuck, please. I need to know how my life was taken from me, from us," she pleads with him.

Chuck breathes out a long deep sigh before finally relenting. "You had downloaded an intersect through the intersect glasses. It turned out to be a faulty one and you had uploaded the same one that Morgan did a few months earlier. It caused memory loss for Morgan at the time just like yourself. I was so worried it would happen to you but you assured me it would be gone. We were on a bullet train in Japan and you continued to assure me that it would be removed in just a few days. I became more at ease and then we distracted ourselves by talking about the family that we were planning together,"

"We were starting a family?" Sarah interrupts his emotional revelation and she begins to feel dead inside once more over what herself and Chuck have both lost.

"Yeah," Chuck admits to her in a cracked, hoarse tone of voice as he rubs his watery eyes with his hand.

On hearing her husband's admissions and seeing him emotionally devastated, Sarah begins to cry herself as tears leave both the husband and wife's eyes.

"We were in the advanced stages. And that's when Quinn got you. On the train I watched as our carriages separated and the next time I saw you again was when you returned home to me forgetting our whole perfect five years that we have spent together," he reveals as he continues to break up and sob.

Sarah has a sudden urge to comfort him intimately. She doesn't know why she's feeling like this. Actually, she knows exactly why she is feeling like this. Because he is her husband and it is so cruel and horrifying that she cant remember him because he needs her right now. He needs his wife. But it's not fair on him. She could comfort him, as she so desperately wants to do. But it would be a stranger comforting him. She does not remember him. He deserves and needs to have a wife who loves him unconditionally, and not one that can't even remember the slightest thing about him. But she wants to remember. She wants to remember him. She wants to remember everything about their life that they had lived together. It all sounds so perfect. She continues to sit in the sand as she stares at him with tears flowing down her cheeks willing herself to remember him. Willing to remember him so that she can comfort him, as a wife should her husband.

"I'm so sorry, Chuck, for what we lost," Sarah says comfortingly to him.

"It was perfect," he declares emotionally to her.

"It sounds it. Obviously we had our difficulties but like you said earlier, what couple doesn't? I wish could remember you, Chuck. Believe me, you don't wish it any more than I do," she finishes as she touches his arm with her hand briefly and she begins to wipe her eyes.

On hearing her words, Chuck begins to gaze at her from his own watery eyes with his cheeks still wet from his own tears.

"You know, Morgan has this crazy idea," he says nervously.

"What is it?" she asks affectionately.

"He thinks that with one kiss you will remember everything."

Sarah giggles briefly. "One magical kiss?" she asks as she continues to giggle.

"Yeah," he says as he begins to chuckle.

Sarah begins to laugh once more on hearing his response.

"I know, it's,"

"Chuck?" Sarah asks as she interrupts him.

"Yeah?"

"Kiss me," she demands as she stares into her husband's eyes and she waits for him to move in motion to kiss her before quickly meeting him half way…

* * *

 **Inside Sarah's Lotus**

Sarah felt an overwhelming attraction to him on leaving him. She didn't want to leave him, and when his tears came she wanted to comfort him so desperately, as if it was her herself that was hurting inside. So she didn't want to leave him when she did a few hours ago, but she had to. It wasn't fair on him to have a wife that cannot remember him. Quinn didn't just take her life away, he took Chuck's life away too. Sarah owes it to herself, and to Chuck _My husband. T_ o find herself, and to find how she truly feels about him before she can return to him.

Sarah moves to take out her mobile phone and she places it into the palm of her hand as she then swipes and unlocks the device. Scrolling through the device, she ends up inside the pictures section and she swipes through them for a long moment before settling and jabbing her finger on the location of one of them, a picture then appears of Chuck which she has no recollection of, and as she begins to study his picture and think of her husband, a flashback hits her...

 **~~~ Sarah Lisa Bartowski was sitting inside this exact same car. She had her phone inside her right hand and she was dressed in a beige blouse and she had her left leg raised up onto the wheel of the car and she was wearing a black stiletto. Only Chuck was also present with her inside of the car. He was between her raised left leg. ~~~**

 _What does this memory mean? Why were we there? What were we doing?_ _I can't remember!_

On her powerful memory hitting her, Sarah attempts desperately hard for the next few minutes to try and recollect further about the memory that had just flashed through her mind. She is certain that it is a memory. It felt so real. Sarah moves to unbuckle her seatbelt, before immediately moving her leg up onto the wheel exactly like it was positioned in the memory that she has just had hoping to spark further recollection back to this moment that had formerly occurred with her husband. Anybody outside on the street or in a home that has her car in view will think that she's insane. Not that she would even register their presence or care, as right now, Sarah is oblivious and she is in a complete world of her own as she tries so desperately hard to remember more of the memory of her being with Chuck that had just hit her.

 _Please remember, Sarah! Oh god, please let me remember_!

Sarah continues to openly will and beg for further recollection to come of her being together with her husband but nothing materializes. Breathing out a long deep sigh, she lowers her leg and she then hits her hand into the dashboard of her car in an extreme moment of frustration on her being unable to trigger any further recollection.

Sarah then begins to play around with the screen of her mobile phone once more and she navigates her way to her contacts book and she scrolls through her contacts until finding her husband's name. Her hand then lingers over 'Call' for a brief moment in pause, and she breathes out a deep sigh to control her frustrations over not being able to remember anything more than what she had. On restoring her composure, she jabs her finger onto the screen and then brings her phone up to her ear...

It takes a few rings until she finally hears a response and the call connects with Chuck.

"Sarah, hi," he says affectionately. She can feel him smiling into the phone based on his tone of voice with her.

She smiles back. "I'm sorry, did I wake you?" she asks sincerely.

"No, Morgan is over. We're having a bit of a geek night."

Sarah begins to laugh on hearing his words as a feeling of euphoria hits her on hearing Chuck's soothing voice and his words to her.

"Where are you?" he then asks.

"I've just arrived," She says, her mind in conflict. _I'm sorry. I shouldn't have left you. But you deserve_ _to have_ _a wife that knows_ _who you are_ _and loves you, not some stranger that can't remember anything about you._

"Ok, great. I'm glad your journey was safe," he says in a deeply sincere tone which makes Sarah feel butterflies in her stomach hearing his heartfelt sincerity and her face begins to blush slightly.

"Thank you. Chuck, the real reason I'm calling this late is because I think I remember something about us being together. Well either that or I'm going insane and I'm imagining it," she laughs briefly. "I don't know if it's significant?"

"What did you remember?" He asks, she can hear the hope in his tone.

"I remember being inside this Lotus. And you were also in it with me," she reveals.

Chuck chuckles into the conversation for a brief moment.

"I was between your legs, right?"

"YES!" Sarah screams out into her car and into the phone in extreme excitement and overwhelming relief as a bright smile begins to form on her face and a sparkle in her eye. _IT WAS A MEMORY! AND IT WAS ONE_ _OF ME TOGETHER WITH HIM!_

"Obviously I've been inside the car with you a lot. But if you were going to have a memory, then it would definitely be the time that I was between your legs," she hears him chuckle once more as a wide grin forms on her face.

"What were we doing?" Sarah asks inquisitively for more information.

"I found out that there was a bomb in the car. You had been betrayed by somebody you thought was a real friend that wasn't a spy but sadly, she wasn't. We had met her at a Buy More convention. And you just wanted a real friend as you had become very disillusioned with the spy life." he admits.

"She planted a bomb on me?" Sarah asks as she fills up with anger on being betrayed by somebody she wanted to be her real friend.

"Yeah," he admits.

"What happened to her?" Sarah asks with malice.

"Um, the short story is that you took her down. Like the amazing Sarah you are," he declares.

Sarah's bright smile continues on hearing her husband's words.

"What about the long story?"

"The long story is that she was an assassin sent to kill Team Bartowski and Casey killed her."

"Well, I wish I could say I'm sorry she's dead. But I'm not."

Sarah immediately hears her husband audibly wince on his hearing his wife's bluntness.

"So, what made you remember it?" he asks.

"I don't know. I was just sitting in the car with my phone in my hand," she deflects, unable to share all of her emotions with him. _I was looking at you. Pictures of you._

There is a moment of pause and Sarah waits patiently for him to speak again as Chuck is probably trying to recall that memory himself.

"You had your phone in your hand when I was working on the bomb. Maybe that's what made you recall it. Sarah, I think your memories are just suppressed, not erased. It seems like you remember things if you have a trigger to remember them. You mentioned the bell at the Buy More at the beach to me. Looking at the bell when you came to ask me for help with Quinn caused you to feel something. And then the situation with the bomb inside the Orchestra and Quinn, looking at the prism express laptop made you think about Irene Demova. And then when you were at the beach you remembered that it was important just by sitting on it. And then when you seen our names engraved in your dream home you remembered that you wrote them." he says with renewed hope that Sarah may well get her memories and their lives back.

On hearing his words, an enormous smile forms on Sarah's face that would rival one of her husband's who is a master of them. "I think you might be right, Chuck," Sarah says enthusiastically with strong hope herself.

"So, do you remember anything else?" he asks, his tone continuing to sound filled with hope.

Sarah's smile fades and she fills up with despondence over her situation.

"No," she admits depressively.

"They will come back Sarah, with time," he says and she hears his tone oozing with confidence.

"How do you know that? What If I never remember what I have lost?" she asks, feeling glum and depressed.

"Because you're Sarah. You can do anything. And that's why you will remember. You will beat this, Sarah," he says in his continued confident tone of voice.

"I like your positivity," she says as a smile begins to form once more. _I like it a lot. I love it, actually._

"It's all I have to hold onto," he says in resignation.

Sarah's breath caught on hearing his response to her. _Why do his words impact and effect me so much?_

"I'm sorry, Chuck. That I can't remember. That I can't remember you and our lives," she says sympathetically.

"Sarah, don't be. It's not your fault. Quinn took away your life."

 _And I am going to get it back. I won't allow the CIA and the spy life to take a single thing more from me. I've sacrificed and given it so much. I am done. I am through with spying. I will find myself again._

"He took away yours too, Chuck," she says sympathetically to her husband.

Sarah then didn't receive a response from Chuck for several seconds and she immediately begins to worry that she had said something that was too much for her husband.

"Are you ok?" Sarah asks concerned as she continues to experience deep sorrow knowing that he may be hurting right now.

"Sarah, I don't want to burden you with any more than what you're already going through. You have enough going on without having to worry about me right now,"

"I want to worry. Talk to me, Chuck," she replies instantly without any thought of her words. She just spoke out what she feels for him inside.

She then hears him breathe out a deep sigh into the phone.

"I miss you, Sarah," he declares in a low pitched affectionate tone.

A bright smile begins to form on Sarah's face and she shrugs her shoulder in a feeling of euphoria. _I miss you too. I just can't recall why I feel like this. I feel so conflicted and confused..._

"I'm coming back, Chuck. I'll see you in a few days. I don't have a job any more. You are all I have in my life, even if I can't remember you right now, so I'll come back. I just need a few days. I feel so conflicted and confused over how I feel. Ok?" she says reassuringly.

"Sarah, your health and condition comes before everything. I get that your feelings are all over the place right now. I wont push you."

Sarah's smiles grows larger on hearing his words. "Thank you for being so understanding. It must not be easy for you, Chuck."

"Nothing is easy in life, Sarah. This is just another challenge life is throwing at me and at us."

"I wish I could be as strong as you. I feel close to breaking apart right now," she admits as a sad smile forms on her face as she continues to talk to her husband.

He responds to her instantly. "If you need to talk. Then I am here. Whenever," he declares powerfully.

A bright smile forms instantly on her face once more on hearing his words to her. _He makes me feel so loved!_

"Thank you, Chuck. Oh, I just remembered. Can I ask you something?"

"Sarah, you could ask me anything you ever wanted and I'd answer," he declares powerfully.

"Anything?" Sarah says flirtatiously with a wide smirk as she eagerly awaits his response.

"Anything," he responds instantly.

Sarah giggles into the phone happily on hearing his response. "What happened to my Porsche and why do I have the Lotus?"

"The Porsche got blown up."

"By who?"

"Amy. It turned out that she was the mole in your CAT squad all along and not Zondra. Zondra was even a bridesmaid at our wedding, just like Carina," he reveals.

A bright smile forms once more on Sarah's face on hearing her husband's revelations.

"Wow. We all suspected Zondra for so long. I can't believe it was Amy," she says in disbelief.

She then hears him chuckling into the phone and her continued smile remains as his laughter warms her heart.

"How did I get the Lotus, though?" she then asks.

Chuck chuckles for a long moment once more at his wife's trademark inquisitive nature. "You bought yourself the Lotus sometime after you lost the Porsche. I came with you and you were just so awed by it. I convinced you to buy it and to treat yourself," he reveals in a warm loving tone.

A bright smile forms on Sarah's face. "It's a good car. It drives so well," she admits.

"Yeah, it does," he agrees.

The conversation then enters into a moment of silence between the husband and wife.

"I need to go now, Chuck. Before it's too late and Mom heads to bed. I'll call you." she says eventually.

"Ok, Sarah. Thank you for calling me tonight. Sleep well."

"You too, Chuck," she says warmly.

"Goodnight."

"Goodnight," she says, as the husband and wife pause for a long moment in silence for at least ten seconds, before Sarah reluctantly ends the call.

On ending the call, she stares at the screen, feeling so lost and empty once more. Talking to him made her feel complete. And now she suddenly feels very empty once more.

Sighing deeply, she exits her car that she can't remember buying for herself. Just one of likely tens of thousands of things forgotten. And all of it happened because she had became a spy. _I should have told Graham where to stick it all those years ago. Then this would never have happened. I wouldn't have lost my memory. I wouldn't have lost my life. And I wouldn't have lost my memory of my husband._

Sarah begins to walk down the pathway of her mother's home. Arriving at the porch, she takes a long moment in reflection, before ringing the doorbell to her mother's home...

Sarah begins to see activity less than a minute later. She watches as the light turns on, and her mother then opens the door.

Sarah smiles at her mother on them making eye contact with each other.

"Hi, Mom, I hope you don't mind me being here. I just…" she pauses for a long moment to sigh. "I have nothing else in my life left that's real. He is very real. But I can't remember him," she admits, feeling so lost, so empty, so confused. She feels so dull and void.

Emma moves to compassionately hug her daughter who she is now seeing for the first time since her daughter lost her memory of the past five happy years of her life and of her husband.

"I don't mind at all sweetheart. I knew you were coming. Chuck rang me and told me you were coming. I put Molly to bed a few hours ago because I didn't want to overwhelm you," she says affectionately into the embrace with her daughter.

"How is she?" Sarah asks her mother.

"She's growing up so well."

Sarah smiles faintly. "That's um, that's good."

"What about you. How are you?" Emma asks as she stares compassionately into her daughter's eyes.

"I don't know, Mom. I don't know what's wrong with me," she replies as tears begin to leave her eyes.

"Sweetheart, I'm so sorry," Emma says compassionately as she moves to embrace her broken daughter once more.

"Mom, I feel so empty and broken and lost," Sarah cries into her mother's arms...

* * *

 **Echo Park**

"Chuck, are you sure you'll be ok tonight man?" Morgan asks sympathetically as he begins to eye up his best friend warily feeling very concerned for the wellbeing of his best friend.

"I'll be fine, Morgan," Chuck says reassuringly to his best friend with a nod of his head.

"I can't believe that the kiss didn't work man," Morgan says despondently.

Chuck sighs deeply. "Morgan, fairy tales don't just happen like that."

"Yes they do buddy. Because you met her. You met her and you made her fall for you. You made her love you with all of her heart, and she will again, I'm sure of it," he says with conviction.

"How do I get her to Morgan?" he asks his best friend for help and guidance.

"You make her love you all over again Chuck. Show her and give her exactly what you gave her before her memory was suppressed. It has already worked once. She may even recover her memories, like me."

"Morgan, you didn't remember everything either. And Sarah lost a lot more than you. She forgot everybody. You still remembered who we were." Chuck retorts despondently over his present situation.

"Chuck, you've came through worse than this man. Sarah will come back to you. I told you to follow your heart and you found her. And now Sarah is going to follow her heart and she will find you, as you found her. You belong together. And nothing is going to take that away from you both. It's too powerful," he declares confidently to his best friend.

"I hope that you're right buddy." Chuck says dejectedly.

"I am Chuck, I am," Morgan replies to his best friend as they move to embrace. "If you need anything, then don't hesitate to call me or Alex."

"Thanks Morgan. I love you man."

"I love you too Chuck. Goodnight."

"Goodnight." Chuck says as he watches Morgan walk away.

Once Morgan is out from sight, Chuck turns and enters into his and Sarah's apartment once more. Closing the door after him, he collapses down against the doorframe and sits into a ball. "Please come back to me, Sarah," he says as he puts aside his brave face and he starts to cry feeling so empty and broken and lost…

* * *

 **AN/** So because Chuck telling Sarah their story went on so long, I needed to end the chapter because 16,000 is already a massive monstrosity so the conversations I promised with Emma and Molly will happen in Chapter 3. Sarah and Chuck will also share another conversation.

I intentionally left some Charah moments out when Chuck told Sarah their story because the fun will be in remembering them together once more, like she remembered the Lotus scene :)

There was so much in this chapter to digest. The emotional telling of their story. Sarah's first actual memory of Chuck. And then the final parts to the chapter. So I hope you enjoyed today's chapter and please review on your way out.


	3. Chapter 3

**AN Thanks again for the reviews for Chapter Two. So much encouragement and love for this fic. *hearts***

 **I want to state on record that I hate the intersect. I never found it believable. I never could suspend my disbelief that you can absorb a supercomputer into your brain just by looking at an everyday computer monitor screen :) So I'm extremely reluctant to include it in my story. This is a romance slash love story, and not Sci Fi. So when you see me kind of shrug off and ignore the intersect in this chapter, that's why. I won't rule out using it in a sequel though. But that's a LONG way off. I may even use it in this fiction. Don't know yet.** **This would actually be my version of Season Six if I owned Chuck, which I don't.**

 **Word Count for this Chapter: 9102**

* * *

 **All Roads Lead Back Home**

 **Chapter Three**

* * *

 **One day since the beach**

It is now morning in the United States and Sarah has been at her mother's home for one night. Sarah is presently awake and she is starting her day and she has been intensely studying her own wedding photograph that is location inside the lounge of her mother's home for the last couple of minutes. Sarah is so fixated on the photograph with her eyes locked onto the look of joy evident by massive smile present on her own face as she just married stares adoringly into her husband's eyes in the photograph.

"You told me it was the happiest day of your life when I asked you how your wedding was," Emma interrupts her daughter's trail of thoughts.

Sarah snaps out of her glance on her own wedding photograph to look at her mother who is now standing within touching distance of her instead.

"Why can't I remember him then, Mom? Why can't I remember my husband making me happy? Why can't I remember the happiest day of my life?" Sarah asks despondently as she gazes at her mother, occasionally shifting her glance down at the floor briefly in her depressed, confused and conflicted state of mind caused from her memory loss as she fights desperately hard once more to attempt to restore her memories inside of her mind as she has been doing every single day since learning that her memories have been forcibly suppressed when Quinn captured and took her away from her husband and from her life that she had been living for the past five years.

"I don't know, sweetheart. I don't know what this whole intersect thing is or what it even does. For a normal person like me, it sounds quite far fetched and pretty unbelievable," Emma admits to her spy daughter.

"Mom, I told him I didn't feel it. But then I met him at the beach and I reconnected emotionally with him again and now I can feel it so much it scares me. I haven't been able to get him out of my mind. And when I think of him I feel strong emotion to him and I don't know why. I can't remember ever feeling as strongly as this before him," Sarah admits in her continued confused state of mind. Everything about her life is so clouded and hazed for her right now. She has no job. She doesn't know who she is. She can't remember her husband. She can't remember her friends. Five full years of her life wiped out or suppressed in an instant. If Sarah's life was a TV show and the main character of that series had just lost five full years of her development and her memory of her husband and the perfect life that she had lived then the writers responsible would be sacked for writing such a shit show, but sadly, it's real life...

"Sweetheart, even though you can't remember it, you can still feel it. Deep inside your heart you know what you have lost. Chuck is your life." Emma states informatively as best she can. Emma has always been a simple woman. Her biggest concern has always been to pay her bills on time.

"Mom, I'm not disputing that. But how can I feel it when I have no memory of it?" Sarah asks her mother for guidance as she continues to gaze into her mother's eyes while her brain is busy elsewhere in a complete world of its own as her mind is occupied entirely by her husband and of their life that he had described to her.

Emma moves her hand to comfortingly rub her daughter's arm. "I don't know neurology, darling. It's just my guess. You should go and see a doctor and look into why you're feeling like this even though you can't remember it right now. Maybe they can help you understand your present condition better," Emma suggests to her daughter with a comforting smile.

Sarah nods her head in acceptance at her mother's suggestion. "I will go and see one when I go back home," Sarah pauses in thought on her final word. _Home. But where is my home? How do I get back to my home? How can I go back home when I cannot remember him being my home?_

"How happy was I with him, Mom?" Sarah asks as she once more glances back at her wedding photograph while rotating her glance back to her mother occasionally.

A bright smile erupts onto Emma's face on hearing her daughter's question to her.

"Sweetheart, the way that I seen you look at him…" Emma pauses as she begins to well up and tears leave her eyes on thinking back to how happy she had seen her daughter with her husband.

On seeing her mother break down, Sarah moves to hug her mother and she suddenly feels very emotional herself on seeing her mother suffering.

"I have never seen anybody look as adoringly at anybody as the way that I seen you look at Chuck. He made you so happy. I will be so thankful to him for the rest of my life for how happy and how loved he made my darling daughter to feel," she declares emotionally as emotions overwhelm both the mother and daughter as tears now leave Sarah's own eyes on hearing her mother's powerful words to her.

"Trust him, Sarah. For me, for my son-in-law and for yourself. You deserve to be happy and to be loved. Allow him to love you once more. He will be by your side for the rest of his life," Emma declares powerfully with conviction to her daughter.

Sarah starts to stare into her mother's eyes in deep contemplation over her mother's words and her advice given to her...

* * *

 **Later that morning...**

Sarah and Molly are presently sitting on the sofa inside their mother's home. There is some slight friction in their relationship because just like Chuck, Sarah cannot remember the time that she has spent with Molly when Team Bartowski had saved her and Emma and even the many phone conversations they have shared together since that day.

Molly then interrupts the silence between the two now siblings. "Are you sick, sister Sarah?" Molly asks her sister as they gaze at each other from where they are seated together on the sofa.

Molly's words catch Sarah completely by surprise evident by the shocked facial expressions now present on her face. "What makes you say that, sweetheart?" Sarah asks as she smiles warmly at the young girl she rescued all those years ago.

"You don't remember me. Do you?" Molly asks accompanied by a sad pout on her face.

Hearing Molly's latest words cause Sarah's eyes to water.

Sarah shakes her head no in admittance as she continues to smile affectionately at her sister. "Not right now. But I'll get better. I just had an accident," she says reassuringly to her.

"What about Chuck?" Molly then asks as she continues to pout and sulk on not being able to spend time with her most favorite friend right now. Molly is deeply missing Chuck herself right now.

Molly's words once more catch Sarah completely by surprise. "What about Chuck, sweetheart?" Sarah asks softly.

"Did you forget him too? I like Chuck. He's nice. He likes me and his friend Morgan does too," Molly says as her bright smile returns once more on thinking about Chuck and Morgan.

On hearing her sister's words, a bright smile forms onto Sarah's face.

"Yes, he is nice. I want to remember him too, just like I want to remember you," she declares emotionally as she fights back her tears to try and not upset Molly but Molly's blunt sincerity is overwhelming Sarah's emotional wellbeing right now.

"He loves you, sister Sarah," Molly declares to her with a loving smile.

Molly's latest words send Sarah's emotional state over the edge and she starts to sob and she wipes her eyes to try and control her strong emotions.

Molly then moves closer into Sarah and Sarah returns the embrace with the young girl who she only remembers seeing as a baby as they sit together side by side.

"I like him too, Molly." Sarah admits as her emotions continue to pour out of her. _I just wish I could remember him to go along with that._

"Please be ok. I don't like to see people hurting. It makes me sad," Molly says comfortingly with a bright smile to her sister.

Emma's heartstrings pull as she watches her much older daughter break down emotionally with her younger daughter...

* * *

 **That afternoon**

"Who's this?" Sarah asks as she looks at the stuffed dog that Molly is presently playing with.

"This is Rex," Molly admits sadly as she has already told her sister about her stuffed dog.

"Hi Rex," Sarah smiles warmly. "You know, I used to have a stuffed dog when I was young and I named him Bunny."

"I know, you told me," Molly admits with a sad smile to her sick sister.

Sarah sighs aloud in despondence over her memory loss and forgetting her adopted sister and her life. "And what did you tell me?" she asks with a faint smile.

"I said that's a funny name for a dog," Molly laughs sweetly.

Sarah giggles for a long moment and she breathes out another deep sigh.

"You know what, Molly? I need to get to know you better once more. Like I need to get to know Chuck again. So let's go out to the park," Sarah says with an adoring smile.

"Yay!" Molly screeches excitedly.

"Let's go and tell Mom," Sarah says as she begins to stand up from where she had been seated.

On hearing Sarah's words to her, Molly jumps off the sofa and she takes Sarah's hand and they walk to their mother.

"Mommy, Sarah is taking me to the park!" Molly exclaims excitedly.

"That sounds great! You two go and enjoy yourselves and have lots of fun together," Emma says enthusiastically as she rotates her loving smile between her two daughters.

Sarah returns the warm smile to her mother before looking down to Molly's level. "Let's go and get you ready and then we'll head out," Sarah says as she takes Molly's hand and they walk to Molly's room...

* * *

 **Carmichael Industries**

Chuck and Morgan are presently sitting inside of the conference room of Castle together. With Casey gone and with the whole uncertainty surrounding Sarah's recent memory loss, it's just the two best friends remaining and Carmichael Industries is effectively defunct as of this moment.

"What are you going to do with the Intersect, Chuck?" Morgan asks.

"For now, I'll keep it. It's the last thing on my mind right now Morgan. I'm not even in a state to work but I need to be here rather than at our apartment twenty four hours a day thinking about her," Chuck admits with a despondent smile.

Morgan nods his head. "That's understandable, man. I am not gonna let you beat yourself up though, Chuck. Because Sarah is coming back. She's had her first memory of you already and it's only been just over two weeks since she lost her memories. After what happened with you both in Prague, you didn't see Sarah for more than six months and then you dated other people and went another three months until you became official. So two weeks in comparison isn't that long," Morgan states to his best friend in an attempt at reassurance.

"It's a little different now though, Morgan. We're married now. We were about to start a family. The past few weeks of being without her feels like fifty years."

"I get that, man. I'm just trying to stay positive and take any positive I can from the situation. But about the Intersect, are you sure it's a good idea to keep it? After everything that's happened to me and to Sarah and to yourself, shouldn't you get it removed?" Morgan asks worriedly.

"Morgan, this version contains Ellie's fix so it's actually perfectly fine. And besides, I have working governors and I'm wearing one right now so I'll be fine. Let's start talking about how we can shift Carmichael Industries to cyber terrorism."

"Shouldn't we wait for Sarah to come back before we do that?" Morgan interjects.

"Morgan, it's what she wanted. It was her suggestion. We don't need to go ahead with anything. We just have to be realistic and accept that it's possible Sarah may never come back to work with us. And if she doesn't, then we have no reason to be spies any more. And if she does come back, and she still wants to spy, then we'll put aside the new plans until she says otherwise."

Morgan nods his head. "Ok. That sounds like a good plan. But I think we should still continue to take on freelance spy work in the meantime."

"But how, Morgan? We can't exactly do any freelance spy work as a two man operation. We have no team without Casey and Sarah," Chuck reminds his best friend.

"Well firstly, we have the Intersect if you are hellbent on keeping it. And I also have a suggestion as to a new team, if you'll allow me?" Morgan asks as he begins to stand up from where he was formerly sitting at the conference table.

"Sure," Chuck replies as his curiosity gets the better of his best friend's question.

Morgan then starts to walk to the briefing computer. "Hang in with me for a few minutes while I put on screen the idea I have in mind."

"Take your time. My schedule is wide open," Chuck says as he waits patiently for his best friend's idea to appear on screen…

 **Several minutes later**

"Ok, just about done. I have a potential recruit that we can hire to work with us. She will be appearing on screen right about… Now," Morgan says as he pushes a button on the keyboard and a file appears on the projector.

On seeing the person in question appear on screen, Chuck blinks six times in rapid succession as a grin begins to form on his face. "Morgan, you're a genius," Chuck exclaims.

Morgan begins to chuckle and nods his head in acceptance of his best friend's praise. "Yeah, I kind of think so too."

"What made you think of Carina?" Chuck asks as he continues to study all known information about Carina Miller.

"Well with us trying to save Sarah the last couple of weeks it made me think back to when we saved Sarah way back then just before your wedding too. Do you know where she is? I have no way of contacting her because Alex made me delete her number. Heh."

On hearing his best friend's words, Chuck begins to chuckle. "She came to visit us a few times after our wedding. The last we heard she was exploring and travelling. Her career in the DEA washed up after what she did to help me save Sarah. Morgan, you are absolutely right buddy. We owe Carina a job for everything that she did for myself and Sarah."

Morgan nods his head strongly in agreement. "I agree, Chuck. And Sarah will even have a familiar face around her if she does decide to work with us once more."

Chuck's grin grew even wider on hearing Morgan's latest words. "Let's contact her and see what she has to say," Chuck says as he stands up and he walks over to where his best friend is standing so that he can get in contact with Carina to see if she wants to hear about a job proposition...

* * *

 **That evening**

Emma had just finished speaking to Chuck on the telephone and Molly is now presently locked in conversation talking to her favorite friend Chuck on the telephone who has called most nights to speak to Emma and to Molly since they first met and Sarah had too before all of this had happened to her.

And while Molly is occupied, the other two women in the home are also engaging in conversation.

"Sarah, I've never asked anything of you and you know that. I always let you do whatever you wanted, and to go off with your dad," Sarah nods her head in agreement with her mother's words. "But I'm asking something of you now."

"Ok," Sarah agrees as she listens to her mother's upcoming demand.

"Please don't go back to the CIA," Emma pleads with her daughter and she becomes emotional at the prospect of losing her child. "I can't lose my daughter. I don't want to and can't face seeing anything else happen to you."

Sarah moves to hug her mother briefly. "Mom, I'm finished with that life I promise you. The spy life has taken so much from me. I never want to go back to it ever again," Sarah says reassuringly with conviction.

"What will you do instead?" Emma asks.

Sarah shrugs her shoulders over her confused and clouded life. "I don't know," she admits. "Spying and running with dad is all that I know. I don't know how to stick around."

"But you'll try?" Emma asks hopeful as she looks pleadingly into her daughter's eyes.

"Mom, something inside my heart tells me I need to go back to him. I don't know if it will work out or not because I can't remember him. But I'll try. If I was as happy and as content with my life as you have told me, then I owe it to myself and to him to try."

A bright smile forms on Emma's face on hearing her daughter's response and she rubs her daughter's arm. "I'm so proud of you," she says in a very loving tone of voice.

"I'm nothing to be proud of, Mom," she says with distaste. "You deserve a daughter who can remember your son-in-law," Sarah is about to continue but she is interrupted from speaking on Molly arriving in the grownups vicinity once more and she pauses from her grown up conversation with her mother to watch and listen to Molly instead.

"I love you too, Chuck! I will speak to you tomorrow!" Molly shouts excitedly into the handheld phone with a wide smile of happiness from talking to her best friend Chuck.

Sarah's heart immediately soars on hearing the declaration of her family member.

Molly then walks into the vicinity of where her mother and sister are standing.

"Sarah, I am finished speaking with Chuck. Do you want to talk to him?" Molly asks as she begins to smile adoringly at her sister.

Sarah returns the bright smile. "Yes, sweetheart."

Molly then hands over the phone into Sarah's waiting hand and Sarah begins to walk off and into the bedroom she is staying in for privacy to have an adult conversation with Chuck.

Sarah then moves to sit onto the bed and a smile begins to form on her face at the prospect of talking to Chuck. And on raising the handheld receiver up to her face, she begins to speak to her husband.

"Hi. I'm sorry to have kept you waiting. I kind of like speaking on phones in private," she admits with a suppressed laugh.

Chuck laughs into Sarah's ear on hearing his wife's admission. "I know you do. Hi."

Sarah laughs back on hearing his response to her. "Of course you do. So how was your day, Chuck?" Sarah asks him warmly.

There is a brief pause and Sarah assumes that he is attempting to mask what he really wants to say to her which causes her heart to soar once more on knowing that her husband is suffering without her.

"It was productive I guess. I spent the first of many days with Morgan planning out the future of Carmichael Industries."

There is another pause in the conversation. He is probably waiting for her to inquire what he will do with it. But Sarah made a promise to her mother and to herself and she means it. She is through with spying. She needs to move on and to find herself again and she can't do that if she returns to spying after everything it has done to her life. Sarah can't even remember the happiest day of her life. She can't remember her husband. She can't remember her adopted sister. Hell she can't even remember purchasing her own car that she now drives. If that is not an acceptable reason to leave behind the spy life for good then she doesn't know what is. Frankly, she would have to be crazy and missing many brain cells to return to the spy life after what it has now done to her in causing amnesia and making her forget the past five happy years of her life.

"How was your day?" he asks eventually on conceding that Sarah would not ask about his plans for a company she can't recall being part of.

"It was what I needed after everything that has happened the last couple of weeks," she admits. "I took Molly to the park and we played for a while."

"That sounds perfect. I am glad you had a good day. I wish I would have been there with you," he admits in a despondent tone of voice.

"Why?" Sarah inquires deeply interested as she can't recall any man she'd known that would have loved to spend a full day with a child that was not their own.

"Because I love her. She's my family. Your Mom is too of course, but I love kids," he admits with a warm chuckle.

On hearing her husband's words to her, Sarah freezes in place and she stares at the carpet on the floor of the bedroom over hearing his intense declarations of love and the reality of the situation. Chuck is indeed Molly's family, as he is also her mother's family. His heart-warming love and his blunt realities are a little too overpowering for a woman who can only remember a life being on the run or a life spying.

"Sarah? Are you still there?" he inquires after Sarah had went silent on him for a long moment.

Sarah gives her head a wobble to restart her brain once more. "Yeah. Sorry."

"Did I say too much?" Chuck asks sympathetically on feeling that he may have caused distress for Sarah.

"No, Chuck. You only said the truth. You are their family. I'm just still coming to terms with it and how I feel about it," she admits as she smiles faintly to nobody as if he was present inside the room with her.

"You're right. I'll try my best to tone down the intensity. I'm just finding it hard because I have built up a great relationship with your mom and Molly since we met them both together," he states despondently into the phone conversation.

Sarah pauses once more and she breathes out a long deep sigh.

 _Please don't tone down. I don't want you to stop loving me nor my family. It's me that has lost my memory, not you. I just don't know how to tell you this._

"Chuck..." she says but pauses to build up her courage to open herself up to him. "I don't want your relationship with my family to stop or to be put on hold. I won't ever take that away from you, even if things don't work out for us. I just come with a little baggage right now, you know with the whole forgetting who you are and memory loss kind of thing," she admits glumly over the distressing situation her memory loss has placed her in.

"Thank you for that reassurance, it means a lot. And Sarah, I've already told you five years ago that I could be your own baggage handler and the offer still stands," he says as he begins to chuckle.

On hearing her husband's words, Sarah begins to snort with laughter which soon intensifies into full blown laughter as she is unable to control herself.

Meanwhile, out in the hallway, another conversation is ongoing between Molly and her mother...

"Let's get you ready for bed sweetheart," Emma says as she takes her daughter's hand.

"Can I say goodnight to Sarah?" Molly asks with an adorable pout.

Emma was just about to respond to her daughter to tell her when Sarah is finished speaking with her husband when she hears her oldest daughter burst into laughter.

A bright smile forms on Emma's face on hearing her older daughter's happiness. Emma immediately fills up with renewed hope that maybe things will work out after all for her beautiful daughter who deserves more than anybody her husband's love and happiness after everything that has happened to her in her life.

"She will come in to say goodnight to you when she's finished talking to Chuck. Let's leave them be in peace to be happy together for now," Emma says affectionately to her daughter.

Molly nods her head in acceptance and the mother and daughter then enter into Molly's bedroom to put her to bed together...

"You're so sweet, Chuck," Sarah says with a wide smile on composing herself from the laughing fit that Chuck had just entered her into.

"Sweet? Thanks for making me feel like I'm eight, again." he laughs.

Sarah smirks on hearing his response to her. "Again? Have I done it before?" she inquires as she begins to play with her hair with her free hand.

"Yeah," he admits. "On our first real date. You called me sweet and I told you I felt like I was eight, kinda how I'm feeling right now actually."

Sarah laughs once more. "Are you always this cute?" she asks with a bright smile.

"Only with you I am."

Sarah laughs hard once more on hearing her husband's latest words to her.

"Are you just saying that to sweet talk me?" she asks flirtatiously with a wide grin.

"Sarah, if I told you that, then I'd have to kill you."

Sarah laughs once more.

"I'd like to see you try. Besides, you told me you don't even use a real gun," she says with her continued grin.

"There are many ways in which to die, Sarah," he chuckles.

Sarah laughs hard once more on hearing her husband's response. _Oh I can certainly see how I fell in love_ _with and married him._ _He's so funny, approachable, warm and inviting._

"I like you, Chuck," she declares to him with a bright smile now formed on her face.

"Good, because I like you too," he declares right back.

Sarah's smile intensifies further on hearing his words.

"So did you remember anything today?" he then asks hopeful.

On hearing his words, Sarah's smile fades and she fills up with despondence over her amnesia. "No," she admits despondently. _But I don't need my memories back to be with you. I like you without them. I hope I get them back though._

"Oh well. Another day, another try. You might have better luck and remember something tomorrow. I should let you go and say goodnight to Molly now."

 _B_ _ut I don't want to go_ _yet_ _. I want to carry on talking to you._

"Ok, Chuck. I'll call you tomorrow?" she suggests.

"Great."

"Ok, I'll speak to you then."

"I look forward to it, Sarah."

Yet another smile forms on Sarah's face. "Me too," she admits as she then instantly hears his breathing deepen on hearing her response to him.

"Goodnight, Chuck. Sleep well."

"You too, Sarah."

Just as Sarah begins to disconnect the call, Chuck speaks again and she pauses. "Oh, I forgot. Say goodnight to Molly a final time for me. Ok?" he asks.

Sarah smiles once more on hearing her husband's demand.

"Ok, Chuck."

"Sarah, thank you. Goodbye"

"Goodbye."

Sarah then ends the call and on putting down the phone, she collapses back to lay onto the bed in the room that she is staying in as she fills up with excitement and happiness in having somebody as caring and as kind and as funny as Chuck in her life.

 _I need to go back to him._ _I need to be around him right now. He makes me feel complete._

Sarah continues to lay on the bed as she looks up at the ceiling of the room in her continued state of joy for another minute or two, before she eventually moves to stand up once more and she walks out of the bedroom she is staying in and she heads along the hallway for a brief moment before arriving at the door to Molly's bedroom. Sarah pauses at the doorway as she begins to watch on from the doorway as her mother tucks in her sister and the smile already formed on her face from talking to her husband grows even wider as she experiences another heart warming moment. Sarah then enters the room and Emma and Molly both turn to look at her as the three of them all rotate their adoring glances between each other.

"Goodnight, Sarah," Molly says drowsily with a tired smile.

Sarah walks up to the bed and kisses Molly's forehead. "Goodnight, Molly," Sarah says affectionately. "Chuck also told me to tell his favorite person goodnight. I'm kind of jealous about that but don't tell him because I don't want him to know it hurts me."

The two grown women and the very young woman all then begin to laugh at Sarah's words.

"I will keep your secret, Sarah. Won't tell him," Molly mumbles drowsily.

"Thank you," Sarah replies with a bright smile as she rubs her sister's arm.

Sarah and Emma then begin to depart Molly's room and on closing the door, the mother and daughter turn to face each other.

"I heard you laughing," Emma reveals adoringly with a heartfelt smile to her daughter.

A smile forms on Sarah's face on hearing her mother's revelation. "I like him, Mom. I like him a lot. I can see how I fell in love with and married him," Sarah admits to her mother.

A loving smile forms on Emma's face on hearing her daughter's admissions. "That's good, sweetheart."

Sarah continues on in her continued state of joy. "There's just something about him. I became very good at reading people in the CIA and with him I just feel something. He's different," she declares.

Emma's loving smile continues on hearing her daughter's latest admissions.

"He is, sweetheart. Chuck is unlike any other man that I have ever met. I hope my advice means something to you sweetheart," she says warmly.

Sarah nods her head as the two women walk into the living area and they move to sit down on the sofa together. "It does, Mom. It means everything to me. You are the only real person in my life that can offer me sensible advice about my memory loss and the crisis that it has caused for me. I don't have anybody in my life who cares about me, other than you and Chuck. But I can't remember him right now and I had to keep away from you to protect you but I need you right now, more than I ever have," she admits as she completely exposes herself to the woman who gave birth to her.

Emma rubs her daughter's arm affectionately.

"And I am here for you sweetheart and I always will be. I have a lot to make up for, for what I never gave you in your childhood," Emma says as she starts to fill up with shame.

"Mom, it's ok," Sarah protests warmly.

"No darling, it's not. I could have been a better mother to you," Emma says and she smiles shamefully at her daughter. "And that's exactly what I'm doing now. I am being a good mother and I'm telling my daughter to go back to her husband who loves, idolizes, cherishes and worships the ground that she walks on. Chuck will never hurt you. Trust him."

Sarah breathes out a long, deep sigh over the issues that her health condition are causing her right now. "It's not that I don't trust him, Mom. It's just..." she pauses. "I'm a stranger to him. It's not fair on him for me to go back to him and not be able to remember him. He needs a wife who can remember him."

Emma starts to shake her head in disagreement with her daughter's words. "It is fair, darling. He is your husband. He took on the responsibility of looking after and caring for you when he married you. In sickness and in health and you are very sick right now and you need your husband's help to get better."

Sarah continues to breathe in deeply as she sits and gazes at her mother and she listens to her advice.

"Sarah, I can't make you go back to him. I can only tell you to. It's your decision sweetheart and I won't push you as much as I want you to."

"Thank you, Mom," Sarah smiles lovingly as they move to embrace together…

* * *

 **Two days since the beach...**

Sarah has now been inside her mother's home for two nights and she is midway through her third day with her mother and her sister. Molly and Emma are presently sitting on the floor and they are playing together with Molly's stuffed dog Rex and Sarah is sitting on a chair and she is smiling adoringly as she observes her mother and Molly playing together when a memory hits her...

 **~~~ Chuck and Molly were sitting on the floor together laughing and playing with Molly's stuffed dog.** **Sarah was staring lovingly at her husband as she watched him play with her adopted sister and** **Chuck turned his glance away from Molly to make eye contact with his wife and they** **gaze adoringly** **at each other.** _He's going to be_ _such_ _a great_ _father_ _to our children. ~~~_

"Oh my god!" Sarah gasps out as she flings a hand to her mouth as the huge memory hits and takes effect on her and she enters into a state of shock on recalling what she remembers saying to herself at the time of this memory taking place.

Emma snaps her gaze onto her older daughter on hearing her outburst and she witnesses the look of shock and emotion now present on her daughter's face that was not there just a few moments ago.

"What is it sweetheart?" Emma asks worriedly as she glances up at where her older daughter is sitting who is now looking like an emotional train-wreck.

"Mom, I think I've just had a memory! I'm not sure!" Sarah exclaims in a state of panic caused from the revelations of the memory that she just had.

"Describe it to me, sweetheart," Emma says calmly as she gazes at her daughter.

"I was inside Chu," Sarah pauses. "our apartment and Chuck was playing with Molly on the floor?" she asks.

On hearing Sarah's description, A radiant smile lights up on both Emma and Molly's faces. "I remember that! Chuck was playing with Rex and me!" Molly exclaims happily as she recalls the happy memory she spent together with Chuck inside Chuck and Sarah's home.

"Yes he was, sweetheart," Emma says affectionately as she rotates her glance between her two daughters.

On hearing the revelations of her two family members, a massive smile forms on Sarah's face and tears begin to leave her eyes as she vividly continues to recall only her second memory that she can remember of her husband.

Emma moves to stand up off the floor and she walks over to her daughter who also stands up from her chair and the two women move to embrace together.

"Sweetheart, what's wrong? It's not a sad memory," Emma says comfortingly to her daughter.

"I know, Mom. I can feel it. I can feel the emotion I felt at that moment when I was looking at him playing with Molly. I was standing with you, wasn't I?" Sarah asks.

Emma nods her head. "You were. Do you remember anything else?"

Sarah strains her mind to think back to the memory that has just flashed before her.

"I remember looking at him playing with Molly and I was thinking what a great dad he would be. Mom, you're right. You told me the way I looked at him and I can feel it. I can picture myself looking at him right now as he played with her. How could I forget something as powerful as this, Mom?" Sarah asks as she breaks up and cries into her mother's arms.

Emma hugs her sick daughter tighter.

"Don't cry, Sarah," Molly says comfortingly as she walks up and joins her mother and sister.

"I'm sorry, sweetheart. I don't know what's wrong with me," Sarah says as she breathes out a deep emotional sigh as she wipes her eyes and she looks adoringly at her sister.

"Nothing is wrong with you, darling. You are feeling his love again once more," Emma says as she soothingly rubs her older daughter's arms inside the embrace with her. "And it's not a bad thing, is it Molly?"

Sarah watches as Molly strongly shakes her head sideways with a loving smile. "No. Chuck is very nice and kind," Molly declares affectionately.

A radiant smile forms on Sarah's face on hearing her much, much younger sister's words to her. "You really like Chuck, don't you?" Sarah asks lovingly as tears continue to leave her eyes over experiencing her powerful memory and the revelations that came with it.

"Yes. He's so nice and funny and Morgan too," Molly says as she begins to laugh.

Sarah smiles at Molly as her emotions overwhelm her and she breathes out another deep audible sigh as this moment that she has just recalled is too overpowering and intense for her to deal with.

Sarah then changes her glance onto her mother, and the two women smile affectionately at each other from their water filled eyes...

* * *

 **Later That Night**

Sarah is presently inside of the bedroom that she is staying at in her mother's home and she is sitting on the bed for privacy once more and she has just connected a telephone communication with Chuck.

Sarah then warmly greets her husband. "Hi, Chuck."

"Hey, Sarah. I have to admit, I've kind of been waiting in bated anticipation for you to call me all night."

Chuck's admission causes a titanic smile to form from Sarah's mouth.

"Well then in that case, then I'm sorry to have kept you waiting so long," she says in an affectionate tone.

"Heh," he laughs into the conversation causing Sarah to laugh on hearing his chuckle as she begins to imagine his grin just like on the beach when he made that sound just a few days ago.

"I had a memory today, Chuck," Sarah excitedly informs her husband.

"Oh yeah?" he asks and she can hear the anticipation in her husband's tone.

"You were playing with Molly and her stuffed dog Rex," she declares as she smiles lovingly at the ceiling.

"Oh yeah, I remember that! That is one moment I'll never forget," he declares happily.

On hearing her husband's words even though they were meant in a completely different context, Sarah turns emotional and she begins to emit small quiet whimpers into the phone and her face begins to well up.

Hearing his wife's distress, Chuck then begins to speak immediately. "Oh Sarah, I'm so sorry! I wasn't trying to joke or say anything malicious. I didn't think about my words carefully," he says deeply remorseful.

"Chuck, it's ok," Sarah pauses to sniffle her nose. "I know you didn't mean anything by it. Please finish what you were saying," she implores him.

Chuck breathes out a deep sigh into the phone conversation and he takes a moment to plan his response more carefully this time. "I met your mom and Molly for the first time, Sarah. And it will live with me for the rest of my life. It was one of the happiest days of my life."

"How could I forget that day and other days and moments just like this, Chuck?" Sarah asks depressively with a deep frown of frustration now on her face caused from her memory loss.

"Sarah, you didn't forget them. It was taken forcibly from you. And you're remembering things. You have had two vivid memories already. And you've remembered quite a few smaller details that we've already covered such as the bell, the computer virus and the other things you've remembered."

 _I need to come back to you. I need to be with you when I am remembering these vivid memories of us being together. These flashbacks should be recalled and shared together. I'm not being fair on you by telling you about them over the phone and being unable to see the look of happiness on your face when I tell you I remember things about us._

"Tell me about your day, Chuck," she says in an attempt to perk up her depressive mood.

"Sarah, I'm a nerdy guy are you sure you want to hear about my day?" he jokes.

"Yes," Sarah responds instantly with conviction.

"Heh," he laughs briefly. "Ok. Well I kind of went to work today hoping to be productive, and I was. But it lasted for all but ten minutes until Morgan distracted me by telling me he was gonna beat my record on some video game. Naturally I was offended and had a reputation to protect so we ended up spending half of the day competing at video games. He's a bad influence on me. Heh."

On hearing her husband's words, Sarah starts to laugh deeply. _Thank you, Chuck. This is exactly what I needed._

"Kind of lame, huh?" Chuck asks.

"My day wasn't that much brighter either, Chuck. In fact, it was more plain than yours," she admits.

"It's better than being shot at though huh?" he jokes.

Sarah nods her head strongly in agreement with her husband's words. "Absolutely. So who won, by the way?" she inquires with a smirk. _I married such a geek._

"Why me of course. I always win. Unless I'm playing against Molly or kids. Have to let them win to build up their confidence," he chuckles causing Sarah to laugh at her husband's words once more.

 _He really will be a good father to his children._

"Do you want to say goodnight to Molly?" Sarah then offers her husband.

"Oh I see how it is. Passing the nerd off to someone else, huh?" he jokes with a chuckle.

On hearing her husband's response, Sarah begins to snort with laughter.

"You know, a spy would never announce her intentions," she says flirtatiously.

"You don't need to. I'm onto you, Sarah, I know your game," he says confidently.

Sarah's laughter intensifies further on hearing her husband's latest response to her.

"You're lucky I'm not with you right now or I'd kick your ass for these accusations," she says with a massive smile now present on her face.

"You've done that often enough. I'm quite surprised I have an ass left to be frank," he jokes.

Sarah's laughter now enters into a hysterical state for the next minute.

"I'm dying here, Chuck. You've killed me," Sarah says on recovering enough to talk.

"Well I did warn you the other day there are many ways in which to die," he jokes once more.

"So this was your plan all along?" she asks mid laughter.

"A spy would never announce his intentions, Sarah." he jokes once more.

"Oh you're going to get it when I see you," she says as she moves to lay back on her bed while emitting a huge smile of happiness.

"What if I flee and emigrate to Australia before you come back?" he retorts.

"There is nowhere you can run and hide from me," she declares.

"Ok, now I'm not going to be able to sleep tonight in fear of being assassinated." he jokes.

Sarah smirks on hearing his response. "It sounds like you need a protector," she says flirtatiously.

"Are you for hire?" he replies in a flirtatious tone of his own.

A wide smile forms on Sarah's face. "Maybe." she quirks.

"Great! When can you start? I have a blonde Valkyrie named Sarah making threats against me and I need immediate protection," he jokes.

Sarah frowns her eyebrows as she doesn't catch his reference. "What's a Valkyrie?"

She hears her husband chuckle into the phone briefly. "A warrior goddess from Norse mythology," he then informs her.

A radiant smile forms from Sarah's mouth once more.

"Chuck, as much as I'm loving this conversation with you, I really must interrupt it before it's too late and Molly heads to sleep. Do you want to talk to her?" she asks softly.

"Of course!" he responds instantly without hesitation.

Sarah smiles once more. Her mouth is actually hurting from smiling so much. Her husband makes her feel so happy even if she can't remember the slightest of things about him.

Sarah starts to stand up once more from where she had been sitting for however long she's been talking to her husband. "Ok. I'll have to put you on hold for a moment while I go and check on her, ok?" she asks.

"Ok, Sarah. Take your time. Do you want to talk again after I'm finished saying goodnight to Molly?" he then asks.

A smile forms once more on Sarah's face on hearing his question, which is a telltale sign of what she's thinking inside of her brain at this exact moment. _I want to do more than talk with you, Chuck. That flirting exchange has lit a fire inside of me for you._

"I'd like that, Chuck. Putting you on hold now."

"No problem."

Sarah then holds the phone conversation with Chuck and she exits the bedroom and she walks through her mother's home until finding Molly and her mother together. Emma is presently reading her daughter a bedtime book.

"Hey Molly. Do you want to say goodnight to Chuck?" Sarah asks with a warm smile.

"Yes!" Molly screeches excitedly as she stands up from the sofa and she jumps up and down with joy.

Sarah giggles sweetly as she watches her sister enter into extreme happiness, much like how she feels inside herself really when she talks to Chuck.

Molly then rushes over to Sarah and Sarah hands Molly the handheld phone. Molly then holds it awkwardly as it is quite big for a five year old girl but she manages to with difficulty and she presses the button to resume the call.

"Chuck!" Molly screeches excitedly and Sarah watches on intensely with great interest as she fills up with happiness on seeing her adopted sister talking excitedly to her husband.

"I have so much to tell you about my day, Chuck! And I want to hear all about yours too!"

Sarah then shifts her glance to her mother who is rotating her affectionate gaze between her two daughters.

And while Molly continues to talk away to Chuck on the sofa, Sarah and Emma then walk towards the dining area to engage in conversation.

"Mom, I need to tell and ask you something," Sarah says reservedly.

"Sweetheart, you can tell and ask me anything," Emma says affectionately and she strokes her daughter's arm to add emphasis to her invitation.

Sarah breathes out a deep sigh as communicating isn't her easiest of skillsets. Fighting a knife fight in Jakarta was always much easier to Sarah than communicating her emotions. At least before she met Chuck. It's evident that in meeting him, he helped her to open herself up to others.

"Mom, in that memory I had earlier, I was imagining myself starting a family with him," Sarah admits nervously to her mother and she gazes into her mother's eyes.

"I know," Emma responds instantly to her daughter's admission.

Sarah quirks her eyebrows. "I told you?" she asks.

Emma nods her head. "Yes, you did. We have spoken a few times about it actually. The most significant conversation we had was when you thought you were pregnant and you called me and you told me that you hoped that you were but sadly the test came back negative," she admits with a sympathetic smile to her daughter.

Sarah's eyes instantly water and she moves a hand to her heart and she gasps as her heart warms deeply on hearing her mother's blockbuster revelation.

"Then I need to go back to him, Mom. I owe it to him and to myself to give it a chance. I can't just abandon him and walk away from him like I'm good at."

"I agree, sweetheart. He is your husband. You are legally bound to him until divorce. You can't just walk away from him. You need to get to know him once more and you can't do that by being here with us."

"You're right, Mom. I should go back to him right now and give it a chance." she states as her mind enters into a complete state of panic and dread over the happiness she could lose if she doesn't return to him.

"It's too late tonight. Go back to him tomorrow," Emma says with a warm smile.

Sarah nods her head in acceptance and as she attempts to regulate her breathing and restore her composure after her conversation with her mother.

The two adult women then watch Molly excitedly chat away to Chuck for the next few minutes until she closes off and says goodbye and she then walks back to Sarah once more.

"Chuck said goodnight, Mom!" Molly says on arriving at the destination of her mother and sister.

"Tell him I said goodnight to him too, and that I love him," Emma declares warmly to her daughter.

"Mom said goodnight, Chuck! And that she loves you!" Molly screeches happily to her best friend.

Sarah continues to watch the exchange between her mother and sister and Chuck on the phone conversation as her happiness and joy and love inside warms more and more for her family and for her husband.

"He loves you too!" Molly then says to her mother which causes Sarah's joy to peak at an all time high on hearing the latest declaration of a family member.

"He would like to talk to you now, Sarah," Molly says as she extends her arm out and offers Sarah the phone in her hand.

"Thank you, Molly," Sarah says affectionately as she then takes the phone into her hand and raises it up to her face.

"Hi," she greets him affectionately.

"Hi," he responds back to her in kind.

"It sounds like you signed up for more than you could chew," Sarah laughs to her husband.

"What, are you serious? I can chew all night long. That girl is too sweet. I love talking to her," he declares to her in a deeply sincere tone of voice.

A joyful smile forms on Sarah's face once more on hearing her husband's words to her as she also watches on as her mother begins to lead Molly to bed.

"I'm so happy right now, Chuck. I wish you could see my face," she declares affectionately.

"Sarah, I'm so happy and I wish you could see my face too."

Sarah laughs sweetly on hearing his response until the laughter then dies down and a brief silence ensues.

"Chuck?" Sarah says as she breaks the brief silence with her husband.

"Yeah?"

Sarah pauses briefly as she begins to feel more nervous than she can ever remember feeling over the impending question that she is about to ask him. "Can I come back and see if we can work things out and get to know each other once more?"

There is another brief pause in the conversation and Sarah starts to imagine the look on her husband's face right now and the thoughts presently going through his mind. She starts to smile in anticipation of his response to her.

"I'd like that," he then responds to her request.

"Me too," Sarah admits as she starts to clench and play with her toes as her insides continue to scream with love and joy.

"When will you come back?" he asks.

"Tomorrow?" Sarah suggests as she smiles nervously into the phone as if her husband was gazing right at her.

"Yeah. That sounds great," he agrees to her suggestion and she can feel him smiling right back at her.

"I should go and say goodnight to Molly now, Chuck," she then suggests.

"Yeah, you should," he agrees.

"I'll see you soon then?" she says warmly.

"I can't wait. Sleep well, Sarah."

"Thank you. You too, Chuck. Goodnight."

"Goodnight."

Sarah then ends the call with her husband and on ending the call, she breathes out a deep sigh as a massive smile begins to form on her face once more. She has never been more sure of anything in her life. She's going back to him. She might not remember him, but she will fight to remember him. She will not allow the spy life to take a single thing more from her. It has already taken too much. The fightback to regain control of her life starts right here, right now...

* * *

 **AN** So then. Sarah's second memory (and a powerful one at that). Powerful loving exchanges between Chuck, Sarah, Emma and Molly. Sarah is returning to Chuck. But will Sarah stay with him? Or will she continue to stay at her hotel room? How will their relationship be on being together once more? Find out, Next Chapter!

I hope you enjoyed today's chapter. And please review on your way out.


	4. Chapter 4

**AN1** 2old, Chuck wasn't lying over the car. That was just me forgetting what actually happened to the Porsche. It's been a few years since I last watched Chuck because I can't bear how it ends and I can't even imagine or cancel out that the last two episodes didn't happen, because they did. Anyway, I corrected it as soon as it was noted to me. At least I think I have? Amy blew up the Porsche and Sarah had to buy a new car as a result, which was the Lotus.

 **AN2** I make no apologies for my jibe at Fedak last chapter. Chuck for me was the most perfect show I've ever watched (despite its many flaws) right up until the bullet train. I even loved Season 5. I loved absolutely every bit of it. It was one of my favorite seasons (because Charah's relationship was the best it had ever been) up until the bullet train and the carriages departed from each other. The final two episodes killed Chuck for me. I can't stomach to rewatch it any more. Let me be clear: if Chuck got a better ending than the one that we got, it would be ranked number 1 as my all time favorite show for the rest of my life. But because of the ending, it's probably not even in my top 50 any more. I can't and won't ever recommend Chuck to any of my friends. Because they don't deserve to go through the heartbreak in the way that it ended. When I watched Chuck vs Sarah and Chuck vs Goodbye I was depressed for three full weeks and I had no appetite to eat. I felt dead inside. That's how much that disgraceful memory loss ending affected me. And it's why I can no longer stomach to watch the show, 'cause I just think of the ending.

 **AN3** I bought my first TV Series in a while. I purchased The Handmaid's Tale. I also watched The Bodyguard and I'm now binge-watching Designated Survivor. I am a _massive_ Kiefer Sutherland fan and I am really liking Designated Survivor. It's a mix of everything really. It has a little bit of The West Wing as well as Homeland with the Brody elements (I've not seen House of Cards so I can't compare it to that). I'm on a roll for watching shows right now. Might go for Jack Ryan next.

Word Count for this Chapter: 10,142

* * *

 **All Roads Lead Back Home**

 **Chapter Four**

* * *

 **Three days since the beach**

"Goodbye, Molly. It was so nice to get to meet you and to spend time with you again," Sarah says as she affectionately shakes her adopted sister's hand from where she is bent down to her sister's level to say goodbye to her.

"It was nice to see you too. I will miss you, Sarah," Molly declares with a loving smile.

Sarah feels her eyes gloss on hearing her adopted sister's declarations who she can still picture as a baby that she rescued all those years ago.

"I will miss you too. But I will still see you lots and lots. I will come and visit you again, maybe even with Chuck. And you can come and visit us any time you want as long as mom agrees," Sarah says with a loving smile.

Molly turns to her mother on hearing Sarah's words.

"Yay! Can we go and see them, Mom?" Molly asks expectantly.

"Of course we will sweetheart," Emma says reassuringly to her young daughter. "Why don't you go and find Rex while I have a grown up conversation with your sister and I'll join you in a few minutes."

"Ok!" Molly says excitedly. "Bye, Sarah!"

"Goodbye, Molly," Sarah says lovingly.

Molly and Sarah then smile affectionately at each other a final time, before Molly turns and heads off to find her stuffed dog somewhere inside of her home.

On Molly departing, Sarah and Emma begin to gaze at each other with loving smiles formed on their faces.

"Thank you, Mom. You are raising her so well. You didn't have to make this commitment all those years ago," Sarah states proudly with immense respect for what her mother has done for the young baby she saved all those years ago which is still one of the proudest and best decisions of her life that she has ever made.

"It was my redemption for not giving you the life that I wanted for you, Samantha."

"Mom…" Sarah protests on hearing her mother call her by her birth name.

"I know, you're Sarah now. I just wanted to call you by your birth name one final time."

The mother and daughter then move to embrace together for a long moment of endearment.

"Chuck told me you're safe when I was at the beach with him. So I can call you a lot now," Sarah says on pulling back from the embrace with her mother.

"Yes, you can. You have called me several dozen times already. Molly and me have been safe for a few months now," Emma refreshes her daughter's lost memories.

Sarah nods her head on hearing her mother's words.

"And I'm so sorry for what has happened to you and to Chuck," Emma says compassionately.

"Mom, it's ok. I will get my memories back. I won't let Quinn the guy who did this to me and the CIA take my life away from me. I have given it so much."

"Yes, you have, sweetheart," Emma agrees wholeheartedly with her daughter's declarations.

"Thank you, Mom. For helping me to realize how I feel about him."

A huge smile forms on Emma's face. "Go and get your husband back. And don't stop fighting until you do. And tell him I can't wait to see him again."

Sarah nods her head. "We'll arrange something just as soon as things become a bit more clear between us."

"Ok, darling. And you will always have a home here for you if things don't work out. But your home is not here, is it?" she asks although she already knows the answer to the rhetorical question.

Sarah shakes her head no. "No. He is my home. My head tells me he's a stranger and that I should run away from commitment because I can't remember him right now. But my heart tells me he is my husband and that I would be making the biggest mistake of my life in running away from him. I probably won't be able to tell him this for quite a while. But I will give it a chance. Because even though I don't remember him, I married him. I made a commitment to him and I gave myself to him. I can't just cop out of that commitment now. Losing my memory is not a valid excuse to abandon and to run away from a life that everybody is telling me I was content with."

"No, it's not," Emma agrees emotionally as hearing her daughter's words to her causes her emotions to pour out of her.

"Mom, don't cry," Sarah says comfortingly.

"I'm sorry, I just," Emma pauses as she fills up with pride. "I have never been more proud of you than I am right now."

"I love you, Mom," Sarah declares with an adoring smile.

"And I love you too. More than I can ever begin to tell you," Emma declares powerfully.

"I should go now, Mom. The drive will take a few hours and it's late afternoon already."

"Yes you should. Goodbye, Sarah."

"Bye, Mom," Sarah responds as she smiles at her mother a final time, before turning and departing down the pathway of her mother's home to head to her car that will take her back to attempt to rebuild her life with her husband who she can remember so little about…

* * *

 **Echo Park**

"Chuck, we should prepare something romantic for when Sarah gets back man," Morgan suggests excitedly as he attempts to divert the conversation away from talking about the future of Carmichael Industries to talking about plans for Chuck and Sarah's reunion instead for the third time today.

"Morgan, I know my wife. She doesn't like surprises and she wouldn't take well to it if I was to do it so the answer is no," Chuck replies dismissively to his best friend's idea.

"Chuck, I think it's the perfect opportunity," Morgan tries to argue back once more.

"Morgan, can we please stop with the fairytales? I love you man but please stop," Chuck pauses to laugh. "I am going to go at the pace that Sarah wants to go at so there's not going to be any kind of romantic dinner nor an apartment filled with candles nor anything else waiting for her. Sarah is coming back to me by her own free will so let's drop my love life as a topic of debate and carry on with the Carmichael Industries debate which is the only reason you're here right now because otherwise, you're going home..."

 **Several hours later**

Sarah has just arrived at the apartment complex that situates where she has spent the past few years of her life. Sarah would give anything right now to be able to have her memories back and to be able to enter into an apartment she has lived inside for several years and to be able to remember her husband. Sarah is back here right now on her instinct and her trust alone. She cannot ever recall feeling more scared than at this exact moment. The prospect of commitment frightens and terrifies Sarah and Chuck's deep sincerity that he has displayed is the only thing that has stopped her from taking a one way flight to an unknown destination and finding herself once more in other ways. But there is just something inside of Sarah's heart that is screaming at her to come back to him, to trust him and to give him a chance to show her that her life is with him, as it was when she married him however long ago that she did.

And on that basis, she sighs deeply to herself before exiting her car and she begins to walk through the gate and towards the fountain that feels so familiar and important to her. Sarah has probably shared countless powerful conversations with her husband and with her friends at this very same spot. She pauses in deep thought, willing herself to remember something, anything of her life that she has so very little recollection of these past five missing years. Sarah has a grand total of two memories of five years of her life. She also remembers small things that mean or make very little sense to her. Things like Irene Demova, the beach, the Buy More bell, apple fruit juice, an impaled alarm clock and sizzling shrimp. She's sure that there's a meaning to it all. She just can't recall what.

Continuing further past the fountain, Sarah takes a moment in pause at the door to the apartment, _Their_ apartment.

The prospect of deep commitment once more petrifies her and a brief moment of panic erupts inside of her mind that screams to her to run back to her car and to take off and to flee far, far away from this level of commitment that will take place beyond this door.

 _It's just another mission, Sarah. You can do this. You like him. He's different._

Breathing in a deep sigh to try and control the sudden rush of anxiety spreading through her, she quickly knocks on the door before any further strong thoughts of running away and fleeing develops inside of her.

Sarah waits in pause for a few moments, until she hears activity on the other side of the closed door and the door then begins to open.

Her husband who she cannot remember but wants to then appears in view and the door continues to open until it can go no further. She watches as a wide grin begins to form onto her husband's face. And she smiles right back at him. It has only been a few days since she last seen him, but god how she's missed that beautiful, loving face that she unfairly cannot recall.

"Hi," he greets her with his wide loving grin.

"Hey," she replies back to him with her bright, loving smile.

She's caught in two minds as to whether she should hug him or not right now. She wants to. But she's feeling more nervous than she can ever remember feeling.

She then watches as he moves in motion towards her, and she quickly meets him half way as the husband and wife embrace together for quite possibly the thousandth time though she only has memory of just a few of those embraces, and all of them recently. She feels his arms wrap around her, and she wraps her own arms around him, with her hands making their way up his back and landing onto his shoulders.

The embrace continues to last for a short while until they begin to pull apart from it.

"I missed you," he says on pulling back from the embrace with a warm, inviting smile still present as he gazes right at her.

"I," she pauses. "Me too."

A brief silence of anxiousness ensues as they gaze at each other in silence.

Thankfully to both Chuck and Sarah, Morgan then appears and joins the husband and wife as he stands at the doorway to their apartment just behind Chuck.

"Hey, Sarah," Morgan greets his best friend's wife and interrupts the silence.

"Hi, Morgan," she greets her husband's friend with a smile.

"I'm gonna head back to Alex now and give you two the privacy that you need," Morgan says as he rotates his gaze between Chuck and Sarah.

Sarah smiles warmly on hearing Morgan's words.

"Thanks," Chuck replies as he nods his head acceptingly at his best friend.

"Goodnight, Chuck," Morgan says as he embraces his best friend briefly.

"Goodnight, Morgan," Chuck replies.

"It's nice to see you again, Sarah," Morgan says with a warm smile.

Sarah returns the facial expression before responding, "You too."

Chuck and Sarah then stand aside as they watch Morgan depart and leave their home and they continue to watch as he walks to his own apartment. He turns a final time to wave at them both and they return the gesture and they watch on as Alex lets him inside and they close the door after them.

The time it had took Morgan to leave had allowed Chuck and Sarah's nerves and the anxiety to ease slightly and the husband and wife then turn to gaze at each other once more.

"Sarah, I can't tell you how glad I am for you to be back," he declares with a wide loving grin.

A bright smile forms on her face on hearing her husband's declaration to her.

"That was the reaction I was hoping for," she admits as she continues to smile adoringly as she gazes into his warm, inviting eyes.

"Heh," he laughs with his continued trademark Bartowski grin.

"So, how is your mom and Molly today?"

"They were happy when I left them. Though Molly was a bit sad but she brightened up when I told her that we would visit them and she could visit us," Sarah states laughingly and Chuck joins in the laughter.

"That's great. I'm glad they are doing ok."

"They wanted and practically begged me to come back here. I want to be back here too. I want to try and see if we can get back what we have lost after what Quinn has done to me. That is if you want to," she says nervously as she shyly gazes at her husband as if she were a five year old girl like her adopted sister herself right now.

Sarah watches as a wide grin forms on her husband's face once more.

"I want that more than I have ever wanted anything, Sarah," he declares.

A bright smile erupts on Sarah's face on hearing his response to her.

"We'll go at your pace. If it's too much, just say. How does that sound?" Chuck asks.

"That sounds perfect. Thank you," she replies with a loving smile.

"Shall we go inside?" he then asks.

Sarah nods her head. "Yeah," she agrees as they then begin to enter into their apartment together.

"Have you eaten yet?" Chuck asks as they enter into their apartment willingly together for the first time since Sarah had her memories suppressed a few weeks ago.

"Nope. I've been driving for the past few hours" Sarah admits as she giggles briefly.

Chuck laughs on hearing her response. "How does pizza sound?" he asks

"That sounds nice," Sarah admits.

"Don't worry, I know your favorite," he declares.

"I know. You told me at the beach," Sarah smiles lovingly.

Chuck grins on hearing her response.

"By the way, how did you find out that about me?" she asks as her curiosity gets the better of her.

"We were double dating with Morgan and Carina after you had made Carina do it to cement our cover and I watched you taking the olives off your pizza. Heh," he laughs.

Sarah laughs sweetly on hearing his admission. "Wow, you paid attention to that?"

"Kind of obsessive looking back, isn't it?" he asks.

"Only a little," she jokes.

"So I'll go and arrange dinner for us now. I'll give you some time alone to accustom yourself to this apartment again, seeing as though it's your home also," he states.

Sarah nods her head in acceptance. "Ok," she then responds with a warm smile.

The husband and wife then separate inside their home to do different things as Chuck starts to arrange their dinner while Sarah begins a tour of their home. This is the first time she has been inside here by her own free will since she lost her memory and this time she takes the time to study and take in their apartment. Sarah starts in the living space and she begins to examine picture upon picture of herself with her husband. She trawls through photo album after photo album and their individual framed photographs of herself together with her husband. Some of the pictures feel so familiar to her, and yet she has no recollection of any of them, except one. Chuck, Sarah, Molly and Emma were all present and they were posing for a photograph together. Aside from remembering being inside the Lotus with her husband, this is the only other memory that she can recall of him and she pays more attention to this picture than any of the other several dozen she has spent the last ten or so minutes looking at.

Moving deeper into their home, she arrives in the bathroom. The whole bathroom is tiled blue and once more, a deep feeling of nostalgia hits home with her. Inside their bathroom contains two sets of pretty much everything ranging from toothbrushes, to two sets of towels, even two different shower gels and hair shampoo's. She pauses in thought as she wonders which ones are her favorite, and which ones are her husband's favorite.

When Sarah exits the bathroom, she glances towards the kitchen and Chuck is still in conversation on the phone. Sarah can hear Ellie's name mentioned and she feels deep shame over what happened when Quinn had brainwashed her into believing that her husband was her enemy.

Sarah continues on further with her tour to the guest room, which is evidently a guest room as it's quite bare with no real sign of it being inhabited.

Sarah then arrives at her final destination: their bedroom. Her eyes fix onto their bed. She wonders for how many years has she slept inside it with her husband. She wonders how long it will be before they're sleeping together again, and for how long this time? _What if something else happens to us? I've already lost my memory. I can't recall other events that have occurred but Chuck has told me there have been many things happen to us._ _What will happen next to us?_

A feeling of anxiety hits her once more on uncovering the revelation that she has just had. She then walks over to the wardrobe and she begins to examine through her outfits. Some of them feel familiar, just like the fruit juice, the sizzling shrimp, the impaled alarm clock. Only there are no memories or recollection of why they feel so familiar to her. Her outfits are more reserved and more mature than what she can remember wearing on assignments more than five years ago but some of them are still explosive. She sets her eyes onto a belly dancing outfit and a brief smirk forms onto her face on imagining herself surprising her husband wearing that, it was obviously for him as it is _their_ home. Sarah then closes the wardrobe and she moves to sit on their bed for a moment in pause. Again a familiar sensation and feeling that she has done this exact action hundreds of times before, which she very likely has.

After a moment of pause on where she is sitting, she stands up and she heads over to the dresser inside their bedroom. On the dresser is several bottles of women's fragrance, with two men's bottles to accompany them. Just like the rest of the home, all signs pointing and indicating that this home belongs to two people. Two people deeply in love with each other, rather just an agent and her mark.

Sarah shifts her glance onto another wedding photo of theirs that is present on the dresser. And she becomes lost in thought over the happiness and joy on display between herself and her husband for a long moment of study.

She then hears activity behind her and she shifts her glance behind her to look at her husband standing at the doorway to their bedroom. On connecting their eyes together, they smile warmly at each other.

"I'm sorry I was occupied on the phone for so long. After ordering I checked in with Ellie and Devon to see how they are settling in," he reveals.

"It's okay. I was just looking through our things. We have made a good home here," she states with a loving smile.

"We have," he agrees with a wide smile of his own.

"So how are they settling in?" she asks sincerely.

"They love it. Ellie didn't want to leave but I told her to go. I'm all grown up now," he laughs.

Sarah laughs briefly. "I'm sorry for what I did to Ellie again by the way." she says shamefully.

"Sarah, you were brainwashed and it wasn't your fault. Ellie doesn't hold that against you. Nor do I."

"We live in a horrible world in where people like to hurt others and it sucks, Chuck," Sarah states glumly to her husband.

"Yeah, it does," he agrees depressively with his wife's comments.

Sarah then turns her gaze back to the dresser, and her eyes come into contact with a beautiful silver bracelet. Sarah picks the bracelet up and she places it into her hand to study and inspect it further. She then watches as her husband closes the distance to her. Her gaze rotates between the bracelet in her hand and her husband now standing near to her.

"You gave me this," Sarah states factually as her gaze connects with her husband's eyes once more whilst her brain is busy trying to recall and recollect how she remembers that her husband gave her this.

She watches as a smile forms onto his face and he nods his head.

"Yeah, I did. It was my mom's lucky charm bracelet. My dad gave it to her when Ellie was born. And I gave it to you on Christmas Eve," he refreshes her suppressed memory.

"It's beautiful," she declares.

"It's yours now. You can wear it whenever you want."

A loving smile forms onto Sarah's face and she moves to touch her husband's hand briefly inside their bedroom on recalling this heartwarming moment spent with her husband.

"You told me at the time that it was something I should give to a real girlfriend as we had not become official back then yet," he then informs her.

"And what did you say?" she inquires with a warm smile.

"I told you I knew it was for a real girlfriend. Which was obviously me indirectly replying at the time that you already were. Heh," he laughs.

Sarah begins to laugh on hearing her husband's words.

"You know, there's a longer story behind that," he then reveals.

"What is it?" She asks as she continues to gaze at her husband and occasionally back at the family heirloom from where they are stood together.

"We were inside the Buy More that was under siege by unknown at the time Fulcrum operatives. They were looking for Bryce and the Intersect and you and Casey came to pull me from the Buy More but I wouldn't leave because Ellie and Devon were inside the store. I gave you the bracelet and I ended up revealing that it was me who was the Intersect and they had orders to take me in but you and Casey rescued me and there's some darker elements to it but I don't really think that we need to relive those moments. Do we?" he asks with a wry smile.

"No. It's probably best not to," she agrees with a warm smile.

"Dinner should be here very soon now," he says as he changes the topic and looks at his watch.

"Great," Sarah laughs and right on cue her stomach begins to rumble.

Chuck starts to laugh on hearing his wife's rumbling stomach as the husband and wife then depart out of their bedroom to head back to the living area of the apartment…

* * *

A short while later

Sarah and Chuck's dinner had now arrived and they have now begun to eat dinner together.

"Sarah, I have to confess," he pauses briefly to clear his mouth from eating as he is struggling to talk with a full mouth. "Morgan was trying to get me to prepare a romantic evening earlier."

Sarah laughs nervously on hearing her husband's remarks. "I'm so glad that didn't happen. That would have been so awkward," she admits with a warm smile.

Chuck nods his head in agreement. "That's exactly what I told him. The bearded gnome is a hopeless romantic."

Sarah begins to snort with laughter once more on hearing his remarks.

"How romantic are we talking?" Sarah asks with a smirk as she then takes another bite of quite possibly the most delicious pizza that she has ever eaten. Chuck had told her when it first arrived that they ordered from this place quite frequently and she can certainly see why.

"Romantic dinner. Lit candles all around the apartment. Hell if he had his way, I'm sure he would have talked me into rose petals all over the floor," he laughs to her.

Sarah snorts with laughter once more. "Yeah. I definitely don't think we're there just yet."

Chuck nods his head.

"Plus, I don't really like surprises regardless of my present memory loss," she admits as she takes another bite of her food.

"Oh, I know," he laughs in complete agreement as he fondly recalls some of the memories shared together with his wife.

"Tell me a story in where you tried to surprise me," she demands with a warm smile.

"Ok. Hmm," Chuck pauses briefly to think. "Well we had just gotten married and I had begun a search in secret to find you your dream home and I wanted to surprise you with it,"

"Wow, you're good," she interrupts his story post bite of her pizza with another loving smile. "You found me the house with the red door and the white picket fence yourself?" she asks.

"I only wish," he laughs. "I would have loved to surprise and to guess your dream home but sadly it was you that ended up telling me about it," he admits.

"How did that come about?" she asks as she gazes at her husband and she then takes another bite of her food.

"You knew I was hiding and doing something in secret and you got it out of me by seducing me," he admits with a chuckle.

Sarah begins to snort with laughter once more on hearing her husband's latest remarks to her.

"You've successfully seduced me more times than I can count. You have so much power over me," he admits with a wide grin. "There was even one time in where we attempted to seduce each other at the same time," he refreshes her memory as he takes a bite of his own food.

Sarah once more begins to snort with laughter on hearing his latest admission. "Wow, so which of us got what we wanted and how did we get it, by making love?" she asks flirtatiously causing Chuck to choke on his food at the mention of sex.

On recovering enough to talk, he starts. "It was kind of me getting what I wanted I guess but you came on board eventually. Though for the sake of being honest, you successfully seduced me in that encounter," he pauses and Sarah smirks on hearing his admission. "You were trying to convince me to elope with you. While I was trying to convince you to a big family wedding at the same time."

Sarah starts to laugh once more on being informed more about her life she has lived together with her husband.

"Obviously we agreed and we ended up with the family wedding. I've been looking at our albums. It looks perfect. But how did it come about?" she asks as she requests yet more extremely crucial forgotten information as she continues to attempt to map out and rebuild the past five years of her life once more.

"Well you didn't want the family wedding because sadly as we know you don't have much family," he pauses to smile sympathetically with his wife. "Obviously we know why you couldn't have invited Molly or your mother and your father lives his life on the run. So you wanted to elope with me and you tried to convince me to agree to it by wearing a belly dancing outfit and telling me you'd wear it for our wedding wherever we wanted to go."

"So that's what the outfit was for. I was looking at it earlier in the wardrobe," she says with a smirk as she takes another bite of her food.

"Yeah. I kind of did a little persuading and I convinced you to keep it. Heh," he admits with a chuckle.

Sarah giggles sweetly on hearing her husband's words. "So if you like it so much, why didn't my plan work?"

"I really didn't want to elope," he admits with another chuckle.

"Not even with the promise of marrying me while I was wearing a belly dancing outfit and everything that would have happened afterwards?" she asks flirtatiously before taking another bite of her food.

"Sarah, I came dangerously close to accepting," he admits causing Sarah to smirk approvingly. "In fact, I even did agree and accept your proposal for about two seconds until I caught on that you were seducing me. Besides, Morgan didn't want me to either. I had him in my ear telling me that you were trying to kill him by asking me to elope," he laughs.

Sarah quirks her eyebrows on hearing her husband's words. "Morgan got in the way of me seducing you?" she asks as she begins to fill up with some frustration over Morgan blocking yet more of her intimate attempts with her husband. _How many more times has he blocked my intimacy with Chuck?_

"Kind of," he admits. "Maybe only like ten percent though. The other ninety or so was all me not wanting to."

"Do I need to have words with him over this also?" she asks with a straight face and she takes a final bite of her food before finishing the best pizza that she has ever eaten before.

"Sarah, we already pulled him over the iou, if that's what you're referring to," he chuckles.

"Don't remind me of that! It's still a sore topic," she laughs.

"Sorry," he chuckles.

"Chuck, you have no idea what it's like to lose your memory and then be told and reminded for what feels like the first time that your best friend stole your condom and left you an iou note that stopped us from having sex after chasing each other for nearly two years and coming this close," she shows him her fingers to emphasize her point "to having each other only to have it taken away from us by a rotten no good thief!"

"A rotten no good thief? That's a little strong dontcha think, Sarah?" he laughs to his wife.

"Chuck, don't argue! He stole from you too. You're supposed to be agreeing with me," she pouts to him cutely.

"Sorry, you're right. How can we get him back?" he asks enthusiastically.

"Leave that with me," she says whilst winking at him.

"As long as your plans do not involve him losing any body parts or your plans culminating in his death, I can agree to that," he chuckles.

"A tough compromise, but I'll agree to it," she says flirtatiously. "But now it's time for us to eat the ice cream that I saw you trying to sneak and hide by the way."

Chuck shakes his head sideways with a wide grin in amazement at his wife's alertness.

"Wow, nothing really does get past you. I thought my super spy skills would allow me to surprise you with it," he chuckles.

Sarah smirks on hearing his response. "Nothing gets past me. I'm a spy. Well, I was a spy," she laughs.

Chuck narrows his eyebrows. "You're done with spying?" he asks.

Sarah nods her head. "Yeah. Chuck, I've lost my memory. Five full years of my life. Just being with you tonight and everything you've told me at the beach and here and our conversations over the telephone while I was at my mom's makes me realize and know that those years with you were happy ones. And I hope that we can get back what we have lost," she pauses to affectionately touch her husband's hand with her own briefly from where they are seated facing each other at their dining table. "But Chuck, if that's not a reason to leave behind that life for good then I don't know what is."

Chuck takes a moment to register his wife's revelations as he carefully plans his response.

"Sarah, I will support and back any decision that you ever make. I'm your husband. But being a spy is all that you know. What will you do?" he asks sincerely.

Sarah shrugs her shoulders as she then starts to contemplate her husband's question. "I don't know, Chuck. Like you said, being a spy is all that I know. But it has to end at some point, right?" she asks and Chuck nods his head in agreement. "This is as good a time as any to leave behind that life, Chuck. I might not get another chance. Besides, no spy agency in their right mind would hire me now anyway, I would be a danger to any mission I went on with my memory loss. But I don't really want to talk about this tonight. I am back here with you tonight to get to know you again. So we'll talk about career paths and our life plans another day. Agreed?"

Chuck nods his head and the husband and wife share a loving smile together. "Agreed."

"Then let's go and get our ice cream. With all of the suspense of you trying to hide it from me, I hope it's my favorite," she states with a wide smile.

"Of course! Who do you think you're dealing with?" he laughs to her as they begin to stand up together.

"A nerd," she shoots back as she starts to giggle.

"Ouch! That's not the first time you've done that to me by the way!" he shouts after her as they start to walk to their kitchen together.

"I'm sure," she laughs back as she looks behind herself to smile at her husband and they prepare their ice cream together.

* * *

Sometime later

"You know, this ice cream brings back memories of my childhood and my dad," Sarah admits as she takes a mouthful of her favorite Rocky Road ice cream from her spoon from where she is sitting on the sofa together with her husband who she is reacquainting herself with once more.

"We have shared so many conversations about your childhood, Sarah. You know, we kind of share very similar childhoods too," he reveals as he continues to refresh his wife's memory.

"What, you used to go around conning people with your dad?" she jokes with a smirk.

"Not exactly," he pauses to chuckle briefly. "But uh, my mom walked out on me when I was nine. Dad stuck around for a few years but he was never really around until he then left too. It was just me and Ellie. She was the only person in my life that I stuck around with. Just like you with your dad. It was you and him against the world. Just like it was me and Ellie against the world," he reveals with a loving smile.

"Wow. We sound like we were made for each other," she declares to him with an affectionate smile.

"Sarah, at the risk of being blunt, we are," he declares with a loving grin and Sarah's smile intensifies further on hearing his words.

"Aside from Ellie, you're the only woman that stuck around in my life. Five full years. The best years of my life. God knows, I've faced MANY challenges in those years, but they were all worth it because I came through them together with you."

"You know, I've always been used to men walking out on me and leaving me too," she admits to him nervously.

"Sarah, I will never give up on you or leave you. I will fight for you until my dying breath," he declares powerfully with conviction.

Sarah pauses her actions of eating the final scoop of her ice cream on hearing her husband's words to her.

Chuck smiles sympathetically at her. "I'm sorry if that was too intense a thing for me to say to you right now."

Sarah gazes into her husband's alluring chocolate eyes as a smile begins to form onto her face. "No. it was nice," she admits.

Chuck returns the loving smile to his wife. "I should start to clean up our dinner now," he then says.

"I'll help you," she replies.

"Sarah, you don't have to," he says warmly as he doesn't want her to have to clean up with him on her first night of being back.

"I do. It's my home too," she says with no room for negotiation in her tone.

Chuck nods his head acceptingly. "Ok. Sarah, about that though."

"Yeah?" she asks.

"Do you want to stay here or is that pushing you too much?" he asks with a loving smile.

A smile forms on Sarah's face once more on hearing her husband's question to her. "No, Chuck, I think it's a good idea. I was kind of building up the courage into asking you," she admits with a suppressed laugh.

Chuck laughs on hearing her response. "Ok, naturally I'll take the guest room."

"Chuck, you don't have to do that," she protests softly.

"Somebody has to take the guest room and it should be me because you're not my guest, you're my wife and it's our home so it's the gentleman thing to do."

 _Maybe neither of us needed to take the guest room, Chuck. I was prepared to try to rekindle our intimacy tonight. I kind of like you. A lot._

"Ok, Chuck. Let's start to clean up then," Sarah says as the husband and wife begin to stand up from the sofa to get started on cleaning up together...

* * *

It is now late evening and Chuck and Sarah have just finished cleaning up after eating dinner and spending the night together again as they attempt to reconcile after the incident which has suppressed all of Sarah's memory of her time with Chuck.

"I really enjoyed spending tonight with you, Chuck," Sarah declares to her husband with a loving smile from where they are stood in their kitchen together.

"Sarah, I did too. I'm glad you had a good night. I guess I will leave you to find and gather your things to use the bathroom now and then I'll use it after you whenever you are finished. Please, take your time. Just leave the door open when you're finished so I'll know when it's free. Ok?" he asks as he gazes at her with a loving smile.

"Ok," she agrees as she returns the smile to him.

"Well, goodnight," he smiles at her a final time before turning slightly and he is about to head back to their living area but he stops when Sarah starts to talk.

"Aren't you forgetting something?" she asks him with her hands on her hips.

"What's that?" he asks as he turns to face her again.

"A kiss goodnight?" she asks as a smirk forms on her face.

Chuck frowns his eyebrows on hearing her response. "Are you sure?" he asks as he thinks back to their conversation on arriving about going at Sarah's pace.

 _We've already kissed. At the beach. And I liked it._

Sarah nods her head and she smiles invitingly at him as she waits for him to move into her proximity. On him arriving in it, she raises her hand up to rest on his neckline and she closes her eyes as they connect their lips together. This kiss was fully reciprocated from the outset and the kiss continues to last and Sarah has no intention of pulling apart until Chuck stops which he now does as he pulls apart from the kiss and Sarah opens her eyes once more as a smile forms on their faces.

"Goodnight," he says as he gazes into her eyes.

"Goodnight," Sarah replies as they then separate ways inside their home as Chuck retires to their living area while Sarah heads to their bedroom that she is having to learn for the first time again as she starts to search for where her nightwear is located before picking out some as she then departs their bedroom and into the bathroom that she is also having to learn for the first time as she starts to get undressed and she then learns how to use and operate their shower for the first time once more. And as the warm water hits her inside of the shower, Sarah continues to imagine and replay the kiss inside her mind that she had just shared with her husband that had lasted a good fifteen seconds when an intimate memory hits her of being inside of this very same shower together with her husband. A wide smirk forms on Sarah's face as she starts to recall the sexual memory of her and her husband that had just flashed before her. And if the memory that has just hit her is anything to go by, then she's certain that she made at least ninety percent of all intimate advancements with her husband. Which she knew anyway even before this memory as she had never let any lover that she can ever recall having take control of her inside of the bedroom, or shower for that matter. She's half tempted to shout to her husband to bring him into the bathroom to inform him of her latest memory that she has just had. Though if she did do that, then they would likely be recreating this specific memory immediately here and now, as the memory in conjunction with their kiss has her feeling extremely aroused. Deciding that it's probably not ideal for their situation to be having shower sex together right now, she lets it slide and continues on with her shower...

 **Two hours later**

Sarah has been inside her and her husband's bed for over the past hour and she has been unable to sleep. It feels so strange and weird and it is massively playing on her mind that it is _their_ bed, and yet she is attempting to sleep alone inside of it.

After showering, she had put on her nightwear and she had walked out into their living area to inform Chuck that she had finished showering and that the bathroom was free for him again while also feeling tempted once more into telling her husband about her intimate shower memory. She had then retired into their bedroom that she has no recollection of yet everything about it felt so familiar to her. She then spent the next hour tossing and turning inside their bed willing sleep to come but it would not. She has been unable to get Chuck out of her mind, wondering if he is finding it any easier to sleep without her. She can't imagine what he is having to go through right now. Sarah has almost no memory of him and yet she is feeling like this without sleeping next to him knowing that they are sleeping inside the exact same home but in separate beds. So she can't imagine what he is going through right now as he has five full years of memories of her.

 _Should I go and stay with him? But I'm a stranger to him. He needs his wife. What if he is sleeping ok and it's just me and I disturb him. What if he wants me to be his fully functioning wife and not his girlfriend which is essentially what I am right now until he's ready to sleep with me again?_

Sarah continues to toss and turn and argue with herself in contemplation of her course of actions until she can't take no more and she starts to climb up out of their bed.

 _I need to clear my mind before returning to bed. I'm finding it hard to shut my mind off. It's already after 1am and it will be sunrise before I'm asleep at this rate._

On arriving outside of their bed, she starts to walk to the door to exit the bedroom and arriving out into the hallway, she pauses as she begins to contemplate entering the guest room to sleep next to her husband wondering if that will help her to sleep any better, and him, if he's struggling...

 _Baby steps, Sarah. It's not fair on him for me to potentially give him false hope and to sleep with him only for me to have potentially decided in a few weeks that it's too much commitment for me to deal with._

Sighing deeply, she turns from looking at the guest bedroom and she begins to head into the kitchen to make herself a drink.

She is now inside their kitchen and she is just about to open the refrigerator but she suddenly freezes in place.

"Can't sleep either?" he asks her softly.

A smile forms on Sarah's face on hearing the voice of her husband and that her husband can't sleep either just like her.

She lets go of the refrigerator she has hold of and she turns to face in the direction of where her husband is speaking to her from.

"No," she laughs to him.

"I've not been able to sleep since what happened to you at Quinn's bastard hands," he admits to her with more malice than she's ever heard from him.

And on hearing his response, Sarah exits the kitchen space and she walks into their living room and she observes him cozying onto their sofa with a duvet over him.

Sarah's heart soars on observing that her husband is attempting to sleep on a sofa and not in a bed inside their home.

Sarah continues walking until she arrives at the sofa and she moves to sit down next to where he is lazing.

"Why did this have to happen to us, Chuck? It's not fair that somebody can make me forget my husband," she admits despondently as she smiles sadly at him.

"No, it's not," he agrees in the same despondent tone of voice as her.

"Why are you sleeping out here?" she asks him softly.

"Can I be honest with you?" he asks as he smiles faintly at her.

"Please do," she encourages him with a warm smile.

"I can't sleep without you. I guess I've grown too accustomed to sleeping next to you," he admits to her as his faint smile continues.

A smile forms on Sarah's face once more on hearing his admission and she has just the conversation in mind to perk up their depressive moods.

"I'm kind of glad you're awake, actually," she says flirtatiously.

"Oh yeah?" he asks cheekily as he detects the flirting in his wife's tone.

"I had a memory earlier, while I was in the shower," she says in the same tone as a smirk forms on her face and she stares at into her husband's eyes.

Chuck swallows and he turns red and looks away from her on hearing her words to him.

Sarah's smirk extends on seeing her husband's blushes. _He looks_ _so_ _cute when he's shy._

"One of those memories, huh?" he asks as he makes eye contact with her again.

"Yup," Sarah admits as she continues to gaze at him while suddenly feeling cold because he's under a duvet and she is not.

"I'm guessing you don't want to talk in depth about that one unlike our others?" he asks as he continues to blush.

"I'm guessing you don't either," she retorts to him with her wide smirk still present on her face.

"Touché," he replies nervously.

Sarah giggles sweetly on hearing his response. "Though I'm not so sure, maybe I do want to talk about it in depth," she adds in as she continues to flirt with and gaze at him.

He coughs for a long moment on hearing her response. "Okay, I mean we can um, talk about those if you want," he agrees sincerely.

On hearing his response, Sarah bursts into laughter and she moves closer into him and she finds and strokes his arm from outside of the duvet while suddenly wanting to be inside it with him because firstly, she's cold. And secondly, she would quite like to cozy up with and cuddle with him right now. "Chuck, I'm just playing with you. I don't need to know about our intimate moments, we can easily do and replicate those and create new ones again just as easily as this," she says as she clicks her fingers and she continues to smirk at him.

"Sarah, you're killing me with this onslaught," he admits as his fluster peaks at an all time high.

"Call it some payback for the phone conversation the other day. I told you there was nowhere you could hide from me," she giggles to him.

"I should have gone to Australia, like I said," he sighs aloud.

"Yeah, you should," she laughs to him.

He then turns serious. "Why can't you sleep, Sarah? Is it because you're here with me and it's too much for you?" he asks sincerely with a sympathetic smile.

Sarah smiles warmly at him and she shakes her head no.

 _No. It's because I'm not sleeping next to you, I think._

"No, Chuck, I'm just not tired, I guess," she deflects away from her inner thoughts as she's never found it easy to talk openly about her feelings. Though she can express them pretty well, as she then starts to open up the duvet that her husband is inside and he does not object as she climbs into it but she keeps some slight space between their bodies.

"Who invited you in here?" he then jokes on her finishing her repositioning.

"Anything inside this home is mine too, including the duvet," she replies jokingly.

"Heh," he says as he begins to chuckle.

A bright smile forms onto Sarah's face as she gazes at him. _This really is my home. I've never felt more content as I'm feeling right now and I can still remember so little about him. God knows how I will feel when I recover even just a fraction of my lost memories._

"Do y," she pauses. "Do we have any hot chocolate?" she asks him.

Sarah watches on as a wide grin forms from his mouth on hearing her question to him. "Of course. It's always been our favorite to help us sleep when we have faced any kind of difficulties," he reveals.

"So that's why I have a sudden craving for it!" she says as a huge smile forms.

"You remembered it?" he asks.

Sarah nods her head as her vibrant smile continues. "Yeah. I'm also thinking about marshmallows. I'm not sure why," she admits.

"Heh. Another of our favorites! We usually coat it with them," he reveals as his own wide grin continues.

"At least I can remember something of ours that's real and is a favorite. It's a start I guess," she says glumly.

"Sarah, we will come through this," he says as he moves to touch her arm comfortingly but he immediately turns nervous on realizing how intimately he just touched her.

Sarah lets the contact slide without any negative response as her vibrant smile lights up her face instead once more.

"Let's go and make some then," Sarah says as she starts to climb up from where she was formerly just lazing under the duvet together with her husband.

"I could have made it for us while you rested here," he offers.

"I'm not a guest, remember. Your words," Sarah laughs to him and Chuck starts to chuckle.

"Right, right. That wouldn't have been a gesture for a guest, though," he informs her.

"Oh, what would it be then?" she asks flirtatiously with a smirk.

"A loving husband thinking of his wife," he declares with a trademark Bartowski grin.

Her smirk forms into another immediate loving smile on hearing his words as she takes his hand and she pulls him up off the sofa as they head to their kitchen to make some hot chocolate together...

* * *

Sarah and Chuck have just arrived back at their sofa together with their freshly made hot chocolate coated in marshmallows and Sarah climbs under the duvet first to let him know that she has every intention of sharing it with him again and that she's not going anywhere anytime soon. Chuck joins her and they settle into a resting position sightly apart from each other and they move to toast their hot chocolates together.

"Cheers," Chuck says.

"Cheers," Sarah replies as she starts to giggle as they start to drink their hot chocolate together for the next few minutes in a peaceful silence while gazing at each other with occasional happy, affectionate glances.

Sarah has just finished drinking her hot chocolate coated with marshmallows and she can see why it's a favorite of theirs as she feels relaxed already. Though that's maybe also in part because she is in close proximity to her husband under a duvet with him. She is feeling very relaxed right now, significantly more so than when she was in their bed alone however long ago it was.

"Chuck?" she asks as she breaks the silence with him.

"Yeah?" he responds as he gazes at her once more.

"You asked me just earlier why I couldn't sleep," she states.

"Yeah?" he asks.

"I kind of deflected," she admits to him as she gazes at him with a wry smile. "I think I can't sleep because I'm not sleeping next to you either," she admits.

He then laughs a suppressed laugh. "It feels so strange, doesn't it? he asks.

"Sleeping in separate beds under the same roof?" she retorts instantly.

Chuck nods his head. "Yeah. I've not been sleeping well the past few weeks after Quinn took you away from me but I was sleeping slightly better than when I tried tonight, I just couldn't seem to get off to sleep," he admits.

"Chuck, we don't have to," she says as she continues to gaze and smile warmly at him.

"I know. But at least for the first few days it might be best. I don't want to push or force you to sleep next to me."

"Forced? Would it be so bad?" she asks flirtatiously.

"I'm sure I could suffer through it," he jokes.

"Me too," she replies with a loving smile.

They then pause briefly as they continue to gaze at each other from where they are now comfortably resting together under the duvet on their sofa.

"Chuck?" Sarah says as she breaks the silence once more.

"Yeah?" he asks.

"Tell me a story."

"Yeah," he agrees and pauses to think as his mind delves into the Chuck and Sarah memory bank. "What about the time that we, well mostly I hung out with a rock star?"

Sarah nods her head as she begins to yawn while she continues to relax and she waits for him to start the story.

"Well… The story starts out with just another normal day at the Buy More," he chuckles.

"Everything starts at Buy More," Sarah mumbles drowsily with a bright smile to him.

"Heh, yeah. So, one day a happy Morgan informs me that a critically acclaimed rock star called Tyler Martin was in town. And not only was he in town, he was attending the Buy More itself to greet his army of fans."

He pauses briefly and Sarah smiles at him from where she is resting cozily into the sofa in his close proximity and she yawns deeply once more.

"So, Mr Martin was about to arrive, only for myself to encounter some bad guy in a trench coat planting a grenade inside of the store. Naturally, I inform the cavalry and Team Bartowski rush the grenade down into Castle to secure it before it explodes and injures or kills a lot of innocent people," he pauses briefly as Sarah nestles herself into the side of him. "So we find out that the grenade was a bomb commonly used by North African military intelligence and Mr Martin had just finished a musical tour of Africa. He takes an attraction to you and we lure him into Castle before Casey knocks him out with tranq dart. You and Casey then left me in charge of the rock star while you went off to hunt the bad guy together."

Chuck pauses as he gazes at Sarah who is now sound asleep and unconscious laying right next to him. Chuck starts to laugh an extremely muted chuckle on how easy it was for his wife to fall asleep. She always did fall asleep easily whenever they would engage in light conversation together just before sleep.

"Goodnight, Sarah. I love you baby," he allows himself to declare emotionally on talking to his sleeping and peaceful wife as he then lays back peacefully into the sofa and he listens to his wife's breathing pattern laying right next to him with her arm now placed over his chest until sleep peacefully overtakes himself just as it had her…

* * *

 **AN/** D'aww! What a cute way to end this chapter. Even if I say so myself, which I do! How will they wake up the next morning? Find out, next chapter!

Next Chapter: Chicken Pepperoni, A bath memory and a Doctor's appointment for Sarah in an attempt for her to find out more about what's actually wrong with her. And maybe some other stuff thrown in as well. We'll see.

As always, I hope you enjoyed today's chapter and please review with your feedback on your way out.


	5. Chapter 5

Hello friends! After a horrible year, I have returned to fanfiction to continue my commitments that I have previously made. This chapter was meant for January/February by the latest so yea, it's long overdue! I don't want to make a huge AN, I just want to get straight to work so the short summary is that it's been a long year of constant health problems and some serious health issues for my mother who is in really dire health right now too. I wasn't able to open my mind to writing fiction and video games have been my primary distraction instead - as they pretty much have been for about twenty years now :P

The good news is that I haven't been 100% idle. I've still been typing up notes and further still, I have remastered everything published thus far. Chapter One at last count has the addition of 1,000 new words, CH2 has 600 new words, CH3 500 and CH4, a few hundred. No plot has been altered in any way. The story still has the same vision, it should just be more rewarding and engaging to read.

Thank you for the kind messages and for the new readers that have interacted in all of my stories in the year that I have been gone. However, I'm not going to bite off more than I can chew. I will just be working on All Roads Lead Back Home exclusively until it says 'Completed' and maybe if I get around to that in the coming weeks then I can start to tell you about a post-apocalyptic Chuck AU that I have planned. But I won't begin to document my ideas on that one, nor any of my other active stories until this one is done. That I pledge to you now :)

Word Count for this Chapter: 11,000

* * *

 **All Roads Lead Back Home**

 **Chapter Five**

* * *

 **Four days since the beach**

 **Echo Park**

It had been several hours since there was last any form of activity inside this particular home in Echo Park, Los Angeles. The only activity, if you could call it activity was a husband and wife in a peaceful sleep together on their sofa with the only activity from the two being that of the usual sounds of complaint from two sleepers, and the slightest of movement via the subconscious repositioning of limbs.

The last time that Sarah had woke in this particular home, she had been brainwashed and deceived into believing that her husband was her enemy. It was totally different this time around however, as Sarah had entered into the apartment willingly with no malice or deceit or any form of interior motive in doing so. Sarah is now beginning to come to her senses slightly as she mumbles a brief, standard, customary slight moan of complaint like most do when first waking. Raising her hand up from where it was resting slightly to connect with where her face is located, she begins to rub her cheek as she gingerly opens her eyes and she takes in her present surroundings before starting to arch her head in motion to look upward until her eyes lock onto the face of the very same man she had thought her enemy: her husband. He is completely unconscious and he looks so peaceful from where he is sleeping. Sarah closes her eyes in discomfort briefly, as her head is hurting probably from where she has been laying for however long since she fell asleep in this position hours previously. She can remember Chuck starting to tell her a story of their past life together only for her to quickly fall asleep. The briefest of smirks begins to form on her elegant young face before it quickly fades once more as the young woman begins to feel drowsy once more.

After sleeping so little for the past few weeks because of everything that had happened with the terrible ordeal that she has faced, she is still exhausted and without any inner thought at all over the position she is presently in with her estranged husband, she readjusts herself and props her self back down to her former resting position. It would probably be more comfortable if she had returned to the bedroom by herself. And if she wasn't so drowsy and exhausted, a spell of anxiety may well have hit her that may have tried to talk her into putting some distance between herself and Chuck. Because of the level of commitment required in a marriage and how terrifying the prospect of commitment still petrifies her deepest, inner thoughts, a sudden scare causing her to distance herself from him once more could have been a very real possibility, but she is here because she wants to be and she feels happy here, where she is right now, in this exact moment, in this exact place...

Sleep quickly overcomes her once more…

* * *

 **A few hours later**

It is now daylight and early Morning in Los Angeles. After an emotionally devastating two weeks that had culminated in his wife losing all known living memory of him, this has probably been the best sleep that Chuck had, had in weeks. The young man's brain begins to start for the first time today and he keeps his eyes closed for an extended moment to revel in the memory that his wife had returned to him yesterday - albeit changed and an entirely different version of her than before the fateful culmination of incidents that had erased her memory of him. Chuck isn't naive, he knows that right now at a best case scenario, his wife is not presently that, a wife. Instead, at best, she is likely to be that of a girlfriend. At this exact moment, in her mind he knows that he is a stranger to her as if they had only known each other for just a few weeks, which is a depressive and sobering thought in its own right, and that's not even the inclusion of the stark, blunt fact that his wife could decide at any moment that it's too much for her and she could take off and leave him at the click of a finger...

Chuck suddenly gulps with a deep throb of anxiety over his mind's depressive thoughts which instantly awakens him and removes all further hopes of any further sleep this morning. And that's when he feels it. He can feel warm air breathing onto his neck. He keeps himself frozen in place for an extended moment as he feels the warm air connect with the very bottom of his neck every few seconds. Slowly, and without moving any part of his body he begins to open his eyes to take in his surroundings. On his eyes opening, he adjusts them downward slightly until his eyes connect onto hundreds of strands of long blonde hair.

A smile instantly starts to take shape on the young man's face.

 _She's still here with me. Exactly how we fell asleep together however long ago. I thought I would wake up with her no longer here. I thought that she would spook and return to the bedroom for her own comfort instead..._

Chuck continues to bask in the moment for a short while longer until glancing at the clock. It reads: 9am.

 _H_ _mm_ _,_ _not bad. I've slept a lot longer_ _than this before_ _but_ _about seven_ _hours is the most sleep I have had in weeks. I can work with that._

Chuck pauses in contemplation for a brief moment as he exercises most of his muscles ever so delicately to remove the slight discomfort he's presently experiencing stemmed from the position he'd fallen asleep in with Sarah last night.

 _Now, how am I going to move out of the grip_ _of my beautiful wife whom is or_ was _a_ _deadly spy who I do not wish to wake because she looks so peaceful even though I can't see her face…_

He spends the next minute or two until finally he has a plan of action. Slowly, he begins to execute his plan with the ultimate goal of escaping his peaceful wife's loving grip without waking her up. Carefully, he begins to slide to his immediate right, which is closest to the door to exit their apartment. He feels some slight friction and resistance from his wife who is attempting to keep him in place and he pauses until she settles once more.

 _Baby steps, Chuck. I'll be here for an hour if I have to. I don't want to wake nor startle her._

Resuming his plan after his wife had settled again, he continues to edge his body further away from that of his wife's until he is now clear from her. He pauses for a moment as he can now see his wife's face who is sound asleep from where she is laying into the sofa.

 _She must be so tired. She has experienced a truly horrific ordeal. I wish I could help and comfort her in so many more ways than just being careful not to disturb her sleeping. I hope and pray that in time, she will allow me to take on those responsibilities once more. But until that day, I will go at her pace and I won't push her into a single decision because otherwise, she could decide it's too much and take off and leave me forever..._

After gazing at his peaceful wife for a long moment, he reluctantly and delicately begins to move the blanket to cover up his wife as it's pretty chilly this morning. His reluctance to do so stemming from that he could look at his wife sleeping peacefully hour upon hour, and has done previously.

On covering up most of his wife so that only her face is now visible, he begins to tiptoe away from the sofa as he starts to backtrack himself to his destination being their kitchen while being extra careful so as to not clatter into something and undo all of his hard work and to startle her awake in a trademark Chuck Bartowski style way.

Arriving at the kitchen without incident, he opens the refrigerator in search of refreshment as he had built up quite a thirst in his sleep. On retrieving the morning beverage, he moves to delicately close the refrigerator door after him, being careful so as to not slam it as he then takes a swig of his drink. After a few more mouthfuls, he glances in the direction of where his wife is located to see if she is still sleeping, which she is, soundly, before he then departs to freshen himself up...

 **Sometime later.**

Chuck had just finished freshening himself up and while in the process of doing so he had decided that he wouldn't eat breakfast in the apartment today. Knowing his wife, the smell of food would undoubtedly alert her and so he had decided to eat out this morning to give her some space when she wakes up.

Arriving inside their master bedroom, he seeks out his intended item as he moves to pick up a notepad and a pen.

Moving to then take a seat at the desk, he begins to compose a note addressed to his dearest wife…

* * *

 **A short while later...**

Sarah is now well into the process of waking for the second time this morning. Only she wasn't as comfortable this time, far from it. The last time she had woke, she had felt deliciously snug from where she was resting into the chest of her husband. Though they were the furthest thing away from being husband and wife right now. Right now, he is only her husband by title and nothing more. Chuck is no longer a stranger to her. In fact, with their long moment shared together on the beach when they had reconnected with each other emotionally and everything after that he is somebody she has begun to like a lot, but they are quite a long away from Sarah storming to the dresser in their master bedroom and putting on her wedding rings as a show of commitment which she had noticed sitting idly by on the dresser when examining it yesterday. They may never even be able get back to how they were, she can't see nor predict the future and only time will be able to tell what Sarah and Chuck will mean to each other in the weeks, months or years from now.

Opening her eyes, this time her sight was met with the form of a sofa. Drawing a slight breath of air into her lungs, she starts to contemplate where Chuck is at presently. She starts to arch herself up slightly from her former resting position to look around their apartment with sore eyes but she can't locate him anywhere in her vicinity.

Distracting herself from her present thoughts momentarily, she glances at the clock in the room which reads: 10am.

A look of amazement forms as she then double checks the clock to make sure she had just read it correctly, which she had.

 _Wow, I really slept..._

Shaking off her amazement at how well she had slept, she begins to yawn shake off the last bit of sleepiness. Sarah then moves to sit up further and she is about to stand in an attempt to search out where Chuck is located before her eyes fix onto a note left in her close vicinity on a table inside their living room.

Sarah then moves up to stand, and she feels a strange sense of anticipation and excitement build on being moments away from reading the message that her husband has left her. She's sure without doubt that whatever is written on it will put a smile on her face, as that is all she has seemed to do since rekindling herself with him at the beach when he told her their story, and in the conversations that had followed it immediately after.

Extending out her arm to take the note into the palm of her hand, Sarah takes in a moment of pause as she draws in another breath of air and she glances at the window for a moment to see the sun shining through the drawn curtains on a chilly morning in Los Angeles. Building up the courage and anticipation a little longer, she then starts to examine the note written to her.

 ** _I'm sorry that I crept out on you this morning. I didn't want to disturb you awake by moving you. You looked so peaceful and kind of slept on my chest, nothing new there, heh, as you've been doing that trick for years!_**

Sarah pauses reading the note left to her by her husband as a smile forms on her face. Her glance arches up away from the note momentarily as she looks up at the ceiling briefly in a subconscious movement of joy.

 _It has been just a few sentences into the note and he's made me feel happy already. He's a keeper, Sarah. I can certainly see how he changed me, and Carina. I'm still shocked over his revelation to me that he had appealed to Carina's emotions and feelings. Carina, emotions, feelings, they don't belong in the same sentence together!_

Sarah snaps out of her brief momentary distraction as her focus shifts back to the note left to her.

 ** _Anyway, I thought I would give you some space and not be constantly in your vicinity with no room for you to breathe. I think the last thing either of us need right now is for me to be tripping over your feet all day long, heh._**

Sarah's smile is replaced with brief laughter on reading his latest extract to her. She then continues to read the note once more.

 ** _I will be at Castle for most of the morning and well into the afternoon with Morgan so if you need me at any time for anything then please do not hesitate to call me._**

Sarah pauses from note reading briefly to digest the information provided to her before continuing.

 ** _PS: I would have made breakfast, but I can't emphasise enough just_ how _much I didn't want to wake you this morning. Besides, you probably wouldn't have missed out on much, as I am not as good of a cook as you are and you definitely didn't marry me for my cooking skills._**

On reading her husband's latest words, Sarah immediately starts to snort as she is once more unable to contain her excitement and joy from his words to her. She continues.

 ** _However, I_ can _make just one good dish and its your favorite, but more on that tonight…_**

Sarah pauses reading and instantly quirks her eyebrow. _I don't like surprises._ _He should know that if he knows me just as much as I know that he knows me._

Her attention then focuses on the note once more as she begins to examine the next line located slightly below the former one.

 ** _Just kidding! I know that you don't like surprises and as much as I'd like to surprise you, I wouldn't dream of doing anything like that right now so I must sadly concede and reveal your favorite dish to be: That's right, Chicken Pepperoni!_**

Sarah quirks her eyebrow once more.

"Chicken Pepperoni?" She queries aloud in bewilderment. _I like Chicken Pepperoni? I'm not so sure about that…_

She continues reading the tail end of the note.

 ** _I know you're probably doubting this a_ _s you are reading_ _it_ _by the way..._ _B_ _ut I'll make it and then we'll see if you were just saying that_ _you loved it_ _to make me feel better_ _for being a lousy cook_ _or if it really is your favorite dish,_ _heh._**

"You know me too well. Better than I know myself right now, Chuck, that's for sure…" she states glumly with a faint smile to herself.

 ** _Anyway, I'd better stop writing before you wake up and then that would be awkward even though I could write to you for hours. I won't push or make you feel uncomfortable by declaring my undying love to you in person for a while… But I can't hide how I feel in my thoughts about you. I'm not prepared to concede that Sarah, I'm sorry. You are always on my mind and I love you (more than anything)._**

 ** _Forever Yours, Chuck._**

On finishing the note, Sarah's heart immediately begins to soar and she can feel her eyes getting glossy after reading probably the most perfect of notes ever addressed to her. She daren't look at a mirror right now, or else she might run to her car and speed off far away from all of these emotions. The Enforcer wasn't trained to be able to deal with this arsenal of emotions that she is experiencing right now. Sarah starts to move her thumb in motion, as she starts to delicately caress the note in her hand.

 _That quite possibly may be the m_ _ost perfect_ _note that anybody has ever written to me..._

Sarah pauses for a long moment as she breathes out a deep long-drawn out sigh as she attempts to regain her composure. Her husband has just managed to touch every single string in her heart and she can't ever remember feeling like this before. She wouldn't have thought it possible. But it has just happened infront of her own eyes. Though she now knows beyond all doubt that she has indeed felt like this before, and if she had to put an estimation on how often she'd probably felt like this with him, she would guess that it has likely easily been hundreds of times...

 _I married a good one. Should I phone him? Why do I have a sudden urge and craving to hear his v_ _oice_ _to accompany his words?_ _H_ _e's only been gone_ _for_ _p_ _ossibly a_ _few hours_ _at most_ _._ _What time did he wake up?_ _Though I'm not sure about this Chicken Pepperoni... I could kill for a medium rare cheeseburger with extra pickles. But Chicken Pepperoni?_ _Anyway, I should freshen up and get ready for a morning jog._ _I really did sleep a long time!_

After a final moment of reflection and thought about Chuck, Sarah begins to move in motion away from the lounge area and in to the kitchen to begin her own morning…

* * *

 **Later that Morning.**

It is now late morning and Sarah had now freshened up, been out for a morning run and in addition she has just finished opening all of the curtains in their home but not before spending several minutes contemplating how far they should be opened as she cannot even recall the distance that they used to choose. At this exact moment and probably for the foreseeable future, Sarah is feeling like a complete and utter stranger in her own home. Not being able to know something as simple as to how far she should open her own curtains really did cement her belief that it's going to take a very long time for Sarah to be able to return to her normal life, whatever that may have been. She knows from her conversations with her husband and with her mother and through one of her only memories of him that she was in the advanced stages of planning a family with her husband. Well that idea is very much dead and buried until her car-crash life has been repaired. And who knows how long that may take.

Sarah begins to zone out, as she begins to glance out of the main window of their dining area and up into the clouds and out into space as she becomes lost in her own thoughts...

 _My life is such a mess right now. Nothing is clear to me. I hope I can get some clarity and find myself again soon. Without the CIA, I have nothing in this world. But I can never go back to it. It took too much away from me. Besides, they wouldn't have me back anyway. If I were on a mission and I was recognised by somebody whom recognised me from an earlier encounter I may have had with them, then I would be putting the mission and my own safety in extreme danger because of the very real chance that I wouldn't be able to ascertain our former connection or encounter with each other. I'm now expendable and useless to the agency. I don't know what Beckman was thinking when she suggested I could possibly return to work for them. I hope there is a plan for me that I don't know about yet. Because I certainly don't have one of my own right now…_

It had been a few minutes, and Sarah has now recovered from her anxiety attack. Shaking aside all of her inner thoughts, she begins to turn away from the spot she had been gazing out of as she proceeds to walk back towards where she had came from just a few minutes previously as she departs out into the hallway before then heading into the master bedroom. On arriving inside the bedroom, she begins to search for her mobile phone for a brief moment before locating it on the drawer where she had placed it the previous night which was probably the location of where her husband had written the most perfect of notes to her this morning. Sarah is still in wonderment this morning over the most blissful of ways for her to start her day. Just reading his loving words to her had put her in the best mood that she can ever possibly recall being in. His kind, compassionate words despite the train-wreck that is her present life had soothed her and had made her feel like the massive issues presently facing her were non-existent and that all that had mattered in that moment was just her and him which had given her an immediately foundation of hope that _maybe_ things may well turn out ok. It will be a long road back for them both if they are to get through what has happened to them. But when he had told her their story at the beach about everything that had happened to them in the time that they had known each other, she is sure beyond doubt that they had came through worse together. She will just need to trust him, as he had trusted her, all those years ago...

With her phone now in hand, Sarah moves to take a seat on the bed as a smile begins to form from her lips as she starts to then jab at her phone and she successfully navigates her way to the contact details of her husband. She pauses momentarily, as she debates between whether she should call him or if she should text him instead.

Opting with the former, she takes a final moment of pause in preparation for the upcoming call, before finally jabbing her finger once more and then moving the device up to her ear as she waits for her husband to answer the call.

He answers a few seconds later.

"Hi" she hears him say immediately after connecting the call with him.

"Hey yourself." she replies with her smile still formed, as she begins to dance and play with her toes from where she is sitting.

"How did you sleep?" He asks.

Sarah laughs into the receiver briefly on hearing his response, as it was part of the reason why she had wanted to call him in the first place.

"That's partly why I'm calling actually, you never told me in your note how you slept." she states playfully before continuing further, "Oh, by the way, your note was very sweet. Thank you."

She waits in pause for a brief moment to respond, as he is probably feeling happy with himself over her compliment to him.

"Heh, well I slept better thank you. And how about you?" he says eventually.

She pauses briefly, as her mind starts to think about how well she had slept.

"Me too," she admits, her loving smile growing larger on thinking about her homecoming the previous night.

She's about to speak again but stops short when she hears him once more.

"Oh hey Sarah, by the way, I'm glad you called. I kind of realized a little earlier that I had kind of forced dinner on you in my note. If you have other plans instead that's..."

She cuts him off mid ramble "No, dinner is fine Chuck. I'm not sure about the choice though." she pauses, as it's her husband's turn to cut her off before she can say something else again.

"Heh, no trust in me, huh?" he asks. She can detect the playful tone to his voice. She smiles briefly at her husband's playfulness, before turning serious.

"Chuck, it's not that, it's just..." she pauses, as a brief awkward silence ensues as she is unable to describe in detail to her husband what she is thinking.

"I know..." she hears him say, as he then also pauses for a moment before continuing. "Well actually, I don't know what you are going through right now but I am trying to understand. I want to help you however I can. Look... If you don't like it, we can always order something else, no biggie. I've eaten with you hundreds of times so if it comes to it and you hate it, I'll beg for a best out of three and try your next favorite food on my list of foods that Sarah Bar…" She then hears him immediately pause what he was about to say as he is likely now chastising himself over his slip of the tongue and her smile fades and the mood in the conversation between husband and wife turns a little sombre.

 _He's tripping on eggshells around me and it's not fair on him._

"I'm sor," he starts after a long moment but she instantly interrupts him before he can apologize for something he doesn't need to apologize to her for.

"It's ok. Chuck, it sounds great. I'm really looking forward to it," she says, with pure enthusiasm attached to her words.

"Great! Dinner it is then. I'll head out to the store soon and purchase the ingredients."

With the mood swinging back to a happy state, her smile forms once more.

"Ok," she agrees, her tone happy and content.

"So what plans do you have until this evening?" he asks.

"I'm going to head to the apartment and gather some things," she admits. She wants to ask him what he has planned for his own day, but in fear of him attempting to talk about the spy life with her, she declines to continue the conversation further.

"Yea, um, that's probably a good idea. I'll see you late afternoon then?"

"Ok Chuck, I hope that you enjoy your day until this evening then," she says, warmly.

"Thank you, Sarah. I will and you too,"

"Thank you. Bye, Chuck,"

"Bye, Sarah." he responds.

Sarah then disconnects the call with her husband. On disconnecting the call, she caresses the phone for a brief moment before placing it next to her her on the bed.

 _Should I dress up_ _for this evening_ _?_

Sarah spends the next few minutes contemplating her question to herself before ultimately deciding against it.

 _Potential intimacy will happen when it's ready to happen, not before. I'm not going to force it._

Sarah then moves to stand up from the bed, before collecting her car keys as she then departs the apartment to head to the hotel room to gather her things...

* * *

 **Echo Park**

It is now late afternoon in Los Angeles and Sarah has just returned home after gathering her belongings from the apartment that she'd woke up in after the whole Quinn ordeal. She had taken some time to speak to the staff and she had been informed that the apartment was still leased for several more months. Sarah had then proceeded to insist to the staff worker that the lease should be cancelled immediately and that she fully understood the implications of that suggestion which was obviously that she'd be unable to return to it any further. She had also signed a waiver and stated her intentions in writing. Her reasoning for this course of action was that even if things do not work out with Chuck and they move on their separate ways, she couldn't ever return to there anyway, as it would just remind her of what was taken from her. Sarah had deemed it better to free up an apartment that somebody else could use and take rather than it just sit idle and wasted for the next few months. Sarah was quite tempted to recommend that it go to somebody less fortunate then her, such as maybe a homeless person, though she knew that the hotel staff would never agree to that. Because that's just the way that the world works. Sarah was certain that within minutes of her leaving it, it would be emptied out, refurbished and given out at the same price that was given when the lease had been signed whenever that had occurred. No, if things didn't work out with Chuck, she would need to go somewhere far, far away from California to find herself again. Maybe England. Sarah had always wanted to visit the United Kingdom as a little child.

Closing the door to their apartment after her, Sarah takes a moment before walking deeper into the apartment.

"Chuck?" she calls out in an attempt to see if he had returned home yet. In any case, he would be due back soonish as it is now well after 4pm Local Time.

On not receiving an answer from him, she continues further into the apartment with her belongings from the hotel apartment in hand "Are you home?" she asks out once more but receives no response.

Satisfied that he wasn't home yet, Sarah then walks into the master bedroom, before placing down her belongings inside the room.

She then moves to sit on the bed, as she takes a moment to decide what she will do until Chuck returns soon...

* * *

 **A short while later**

"So, Chicken Pepperoni huh, buddy?" Morgan asks as he shakes his head approvingly and his eyes glance onto the bag of ingredients that his friend is holding as they stand together at the fountain at the apartment complex housing both his friend and himself.

"Yeah... She's very apprehensive about it about it though, buddy," Chuck admits to his best friend with a sad smile caused from the implications of his words.

On hearing his friend's words, a look of bewilderment forms on Morgan's face "Why in good heavens would she be apprehensive about it? It's her favorite," he replies in a confused tone of voice to accompany his present facial expressions.

"Morgan, she can't remember it being her favorite. Quinn has messed her up big time man," Chuck replies dejectedly on thinking about what that man has done to him and his wife once more.

Morgan's perplexed look continues. "But surely you can't forget your favorite food?" he asks.

"Morgan, you forgot your all-time favorite movies buddy," Chuck reminds and interjects in defence of his beloved wife.

On hearing his friend's latest words, Morgan begins to nod his head in acceptance. "Good point. Man, that Intersect has a lot to answer for. I know it was made by your dad but buddy, it has taken a really big toll out on your life. I feel so bad for you man," he states sincerely, from the deepest corner of his heart.

"No Morgan, you're absolutely right. I wish the darn thing would never have been invented," Chuck admits, as a minor feeling of sadness over his and his wife's situation clouds his thoughts momentarily and he lowers his gaze.

"But then you'd never have met her?" Morgan interjects causing Chuck to raise up his head from where it had formerly dropped in sadness.

"True…" he pauses. "Gee to be honest with you buddy, I don't know what to think right now man. I know Sarah's life is a mess but mine's not much better. I've lost something too."

 _I've lost her. I need her back. Without her, I'm nothing..._

Morgan nods his head once more in agreement, before moving his arm to pat his best friend's shoulder consolingly. "I know you have Chuck. Maybe you should you speak to somebody. If not me or Ellie, I don't know, maybe somebody professionally?" he suggests, the concern for the well-being of his best friend evident by his tone of blunt sincerity.

"I'll be fine, Morgan," Chuck replies with a reassuring, weak smile.

"If you're sure. I mean, Chuck, it's ok to talk..."

Chuck shakes his head dismissively as he cuts his best friend off from speaking "Honestly Morgan, I''l be fine. The only thing I could not live with is to not be able to see her again. At least I have that, at least I can see her," he admits, as his depressive frame of mind begins to perk up on finding something positive that he can cling and focus all of his energy onto.

Morgan nods his head acceptingly. "On that note, do you think she'll be up to see me any time soon? I know at times I have deeply annoyed her but she means a lot to me man. Almost as much as you. She's a part of you and thus me, now."

On hearing his friend's heartfelt words, Chuck moves to reciprocate his friend's earlier action, as he pats his best friend on the shoulder.

"Morgan, I thank you from the bottom of my heart for what you're doing for me and Sarah right now. She won't be able to tell you right now but I'm sure if one day at some point in time we get Sarah back, she will also thank and make it up to you," he replies to his best friend with a great deal of affinity felt towards him.

"I just want you both to be ok man," Morgan states as Chuck notices his best friend's eyes begin to gloss slightly, causing his own to now do the same.

"Thank you, Morgan,"

"But as to my point?" Morgan asks as he attempts to find out if Sarah is able to see him right now.

"Oh yeah, sorry. I don't think she is up to seeing many people right now buddy, she's finding it hard with me alone," Chuck admits.

Morgan nods his head in agreement. "Yeah, I get that..." he pauses, as he searches for the words he wishes to use. "Look, if she ever wants to talk to anybody except you for whatever reason, I'm here for her and tell her she need only knock and Alex would love to see her too."

Chuck nods his head as a vibrant, loving smile takes shape. "Thanks man. I'll tell her. Oh, by the way, she's kind of gunning for you at the moment so I don't think you're very high up on her contact list right now anyway. I kinda refreshed her memory about the iou in Barstow," Chuck admits, as he then immediately starts to chuckle on seeing his best friend's eyes light up in utter fear and complete dread.

"Oh Chuck, man! Why in the hell would you tell her about that! Are you trying to kill me?" he asks which furthers Chuck's laughter as he watches his best friend's eyes start to scan his entire surroundings in search of an assailant in the form of his wife.

"Morgan, not all memories are good ones," he then reminds his best friend once he had been able to stop laughing.

"Granted. But why the heck would you tell her about THAT one!" he replies in utter fear causing Chuck to be unable to control himself from laughing once more. Call it a little payback for yesterday when Morgan spent the whole day getting on Chuck's nerves in his attempts to get Chuck to prepare a romantic homecoming against Chuck's wishes for Sarah.

"Actually Morgan, that's not all. She called you a rotten, no good thief and I had to do some serious grovelling just to talk her out of removing any of your body parts or outright killing you," he chuckles to himself, feeling very proud of his winding up of his best friend right now.

On hearing his friend's latest comments, Morgan immediately starts to audibly shriek in fear, and his eyes widen further still.

"I'd better go inside Chuck, I suddenly don't feel very safe out here!" Morgan admits nervously as his new-found state of paranoia and anxiety threatens to overwhelm him.

A wide grin forms on Chuck's face on hearing his best friend's words coupled with the look of fear on his best friend's face right now.

 _I can be very evil at times, Chucky boy. That's what he gets for yesterday. Mwahaha!_

"Ok buddy, enjoy your night, yeah? Oh and say hi to Alex from me."

A petrified Morgan Grimes nods his head in acceptance of his friend's request. "Ok man. I'll ring you later, yeah?" he suggests.

"Sounds good buddy, maybe we'll have a gaming night soon, give Sarah some space?"

Morgan nods his head once more. "Sounds good, but at my place!" he stresses.

A light chuckle emits from Chuck as he also nods his head in agreement. "Ok then. Bye Morgan,"

"Cya, Chuck," Morgan replies as Chuck then moves to embrace his best friend before they depart the vicinity of each other and Chuck can't help but watch as his friend near sprints to his door still in a petrified state of fear in anticipation of being ambushed by Sarah. He continues to watch as Morgan turns back and waves to him, to which Chuck responds in kind until he watches as Alex opens the door and Morgan quickly enters inside as the door then closes behind them.

Laughing out a brief final chuckle over the state of fear his best friend is now in, Chuck then turns himself until he's facing the door to his own home, and he takes a brief moment to compose himself and to build up his courage to enter. He's still feeling quite awkward and tense around his wife for the time being. As he doesn't presently know what she actually is to him. Is she an acquaintance, a friend, a girlfriend, a wife? Definitely not a wife, which is what is the most awkward thing about it all, because he _is_ her husband and he will never stop behaving as such for one second for the rest of his life.

On composing himself enough and having built up enough courage to face the situation that the husband and wife are presently in, he then puts key in the door and enters the apartment with the bag of ingredients for tonight's meal.

"Sarah?" he calls out as he closes the door behind him.

On closing the door to their home, he continues deeper into their home. "Hone..." he pauses briefly on his second slip-up of the day "Are you home?"

Having not received an answer, he was now already close to their kitchen when he stops dead in place as his wife has just appeared from out in the hallway and had arrived into the kitchen.

He then instantly locks his eyes in place on her and he watches as she stops dead and she meets her own eyes with his. Just seeing her face alone is enough for a wide loving grin to form on his face and he watches as a similar facial expression begins to take form on his wife's.

He wants to walk right up to her and embrace her but he's caught in two minds on whether its appropriate. He averts his eyes slightly, as he places down the groceries onto the nearest worktop before concentrating himself back at his wife who is watching him intently.

"Hi," he says as he greets her.

"Hi," she replies, in what Chuck interprets as a warm, inviting tone which gives him the courage to follow through on his desire to embrace her, as the husband and wife move to embrace together in their kitchen.

"I missed you," he says softly and he watches as his wife smiles at him.

"I… Me too," she says, causing his grin to widen and they stay in the embrace for a short while longer until he feels it begin to get slightly awkward, and they pull apart from each other.

"How was your day?" she asks on them separating enough from each others proximity slightly.

 _Better for seeing you. I love you._

"It was good thank you. I'm just glad to be home and I'm looking forward to making dinner," he states passionately with a loving grin.

He watches as his wife laughs out a brief suppressed chuckle causing him to continue his loving grin at her.

"How was yours?" he asks, as the husband and wife continue to stand stationary and he folds his arms compactly into his body as he awaits her response to him.

"It was busy. The highlight of it being me returning to that hotel apartment." she informs him.

"Oh?" he enquires.

She nods her head. "Yeah. I actually closed down the lease and waived it off today. I won't be needing it any more. If things don't work out between us I can't go back there anyway. It would just remind me of a lot of the bad things that have happened to me the past two weeks," she admits with a sad smile.

But Chuck hadn't been able to register the final part of what his wife had just said to him. His brain had froze and is still stuck on 'If things don't work out between us'

He begins to feel his heart sink and his gaze shifts down at the floor in complete despair. He is so occupied with grief that he doesn't notice his wife enter into his proximity once more as she moves to touch his arm and only then when her hand connects with his wrist does his gaze look up to meet her eyes and he instantly can see sadness and regret in her eyes.

"Chuck, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have said that to you. I didn't mean it maliciously, it just slipped out," she admits in a deeply sincere and apologetic tone of voice.

He takes a big gulp and tries to breathe away all of his anxieties and fears over their situation before responding, "No, you're right. I can't force or make you love me again. If things don't work out it's your right to leave and I won't physically stop you. Just please I need you to know that I will do all that I can to avoid that ever happening."

He watches as his wife's lips crease in sadness in response to his words to her.

"I do, I know that," she then says as her mouth opens and a smile forms once more.

He nods his head weakly in acceptance. Still finding it difficult to overcome just how impactful her chosen words were to him.

"Chuck, I'm here to give it a chance. I owe it to myself and to you," she says in a continued attempt at reassurance, with her hand still placed comfortingly on his wrist.

He nods his head as her latest attempt at reassurance works and his nerves begin to simmer down once more."Thank you, Sarah," he replies as he then shifts his gaze to the direction of his watch.

"I should probably get started on dinner, it's already quite late" he then says, in an attempt to move on from what had just happened, and to perk up the mood of the couple.

"Ok," she agrees as she finally begins to let go of his wrist until they are separated once more.

Chuck then turns to his side and picks up the groceries he had purchased once more before moving to a different part of the kitchen as Sarah joins him.

"I tell you what, why don't you take a nice bath while I do the preparation and the cooking. The time will fly by. I don't know about you, but I'm hungry," he suggests with a smile.

He watches her smile in response ."I'm hungry too. But don't you want help?" she asks.

He shakes his head no before jokingly replying, "No, it's ok, really. Besides, you've never made it so you wouldn't know what to do."

She laughs briefly. "No, but I could learn and I want to help out," she says sincerely.

He smiles in response to hearing her sincerity and her invitation to help out. "Thank you for the invitation. But really, I'm fine," He stresses.

She nods her head in acceptance. "If you're sure,"

"I am," he quickly replies. "You really should relax and take a nice bath."

He watches as a mischievous smile forms on the face of his wife as he awaits in eager anticipation her obviously humorous response.

"Is this your way of saying I smell?" she asks eventually causing them to both snicker together.

He pauses for a moment, as he prepares his own humorous response.

"Deliciously? Why yes, you do smell deliciously," he jokes causing a beaming smile to form on the face of his wife.

"Oh, by the way, about that: I wasn't sure which washing soaps and gels were mine, and which were yours so I kind of just guessed," she informs him causing a brief chuckle from Chuck.

"Oh that was definitely yours. It's your favorite. But I love the smell of it on you too," he admits causing Sarah's loving smile to extend further.

"Yes, it's nice," she admits to him, before then moving into his proximity once more and he watches with great interest as his wife brings her head closer to his own causing a brief panic as he thinks for the briefest of moments that she's about to kiss him, until he watches as it turns and she starts to sniff his neckline slightly, putting the damper on those aforementioned thoughts.

On completing her mission, she backs back out of his proximity with a wide grin now formed on both the husband and wife.

"You don't smell so bad yourself by the way," she says to him on finishing her repositioning inside of their kitchen causing them both to laugh together once more.

"Heh, I'll smell of pepperoni by the time this is ready," Chuck says humorously which immediately causes a distasteful expression to form on the face of his wife, which furthers the smile on Chuck's face that has been present ever since they made up after their brief earlier misunderstanding.

"And on that note, I'm going to bathe!" she responds humorously, before turning and looking back at him occasionally as she walked off into the distance.

Chuck nods his head approvingly at her. "Ok, and take your time!" he shouts after her causing Sarah to freeze in place and turn to smile at him a final time, before disappearing from sight as she heads to bathe while he then begins dinner preparations…

* * *

 **A short while later…**

Sarah is now presently inside of a lovely, warm, soapy relaxing bubble bath. Every inch of her body is relaxing and this is exactly what she needed to remove all of the built up tension and stress from her body. It's the first real time that she has relaxed in several weeks. Her husband had been entirely correct in his suggestion to take one to her, as he has been correct almost every time they had been together in the short time that she can remember being with him.

She had been inside the bath for a few minutes now as she moves to duck her head into the water. She stays in this position for a long moment until raising herself up slightly once more as she then begins to cough slightly to restore her airways as a wide, relaxed smile now forms as she now begins to pamper her skin up with lavender soap with the wet sponge. Sarah continues bathing herself for several minutes and she has now reached her long, golden legs and she is in the process of applying maintenance to her leg that is arched up into the air when she feels one almighty memory flash right before her eyes.

 **~~~ Sarah was sitting inside of a bathtub, in an almost identical position to the one that she was presently in. One of her legs was raised up into the air and she was bathing in soapy water, exactly how she is at this exact moment. Only something was different entirely, as Chuck was inside of the bathroom with her. He was wearing some orange, floral type shorts with a blue shirt and a beige suit jacket and they were locked in conversation together.**

 **"Vegas… Vegas… What does a bachelor wear, in Vegas?" she hears her husband say.**

 **"You're sure doing an awful lot of maintenance over there." she also hears him say.**

 **"Oh I'm just reminding you of what you'll be missing out on in Vegas," she hears her response.**

 **"Oh trust me, I'll remember..." she hears him say. ~~~**

 _Was this a memory? Am I losing my mind and imagining things? No, this feels too real. It feels exactly the same as my memory of being in the Lotus with him when he defused the bomb. It feels exactly the same as my memory at my mom's where I remembered Chuck playing with Molly and thoughts about him being a great father to our children._

A huge rush of excitement, Adrenalin and anxiety immediately hits and begins to take hold of Sarah as if somebody has just thrown a brick right at her. She becomes instantly agitated as she tries to understand and make sense of the memory and piece together if it was actually even a memory that has just flashed right before her.

 _How do I know what's a memory and what is what I want to be a memory? Is my mind playing tricks on me? It flashed before me exactly like the others. I'm sure it was a memory…_

"Chuck!" Sarah yells out to her husband suddenly in a high pitch loud enough for anybody in the whole apartment complex and probably all of Burbank to hear.

Sarah needs to get to the bottom of what has just happened inside of her mind immediately. She needs her husband's help to piece together if what she had just had is an actual memory or if it is her imagination and she can't wait a second longer and is about to call him again when the door comes flying open and her husband rushes and barges into the bathroom in a way that _John Rambo_ would have been proud of.

Sarah doesn't even flinch or register that he is seeing her naked in the bathtub. Her subconscious state of mind is likely telling her it's completely normal and fine, or maybe she is just in too much of a frenzied state of mind to even register it.

"Sarah! Are you ok?!" he says as she watches him as he inspects her to make sure she's ok.

"I think I've just had a memory!" she shouts in her present frenzied, panicky, excited state of mind.

She watches as he then seems to visibly calm down likely due to him knowing she's safe and not in any present danger before he then moves to take a seat on the floor next to her.

"What was the memory?" he asks in a calm and composed manner which surprises her a little, as shes not sure how he can find his composure as she is certain that he is ridden with excitement right now just as she presently is.

"I was in the bath you were in the bathroom with me!" she states excitedly in a tone of voice as if she had just won a multi-milion jackpot.

She then watches as he coughs in slight embarrassment. "Um, that's kind of happened a lot," he admits causing Sarah to do a double take. Due to her frenzied state, that was the last thing she had expected to hear from him.

"Right..." she says on her brain registering that her husband is likely correct in that they had been in the bathroom at the same time together a lot.

"Is there anything else you can remember about it? So we can work out if it's a memory or not?"

Sarah pauses, as she contemplates her husband's question. "You were in shorts, I think? And we were talking about Vegas?" she elaborates the further information requested by Chuck.

She then watches her husband's face as he ponders the information provided to him for a brief moment until his face changes and his disorientation seems to clear and a wide grin begins to form.

"Ohhh, yeah! My stag party," he says excitedly.

Sarah does an instant double take and her jaw drops on Chuck telling her that his stag party had taken place in Las Vegas.

"You had your stag party in Vegas?" she asks as she quirks her eyebrows on finishing her question as her inner thoughts begin to hold an immediate inquisition into her husband's potential behaviour in the City of Sin.

 _What did he do in Vegas?_

"Yeah," he admits, his wide grin of excitement over Sarah's new memory still ever present.

Sarah quirks her eyebrows one more.

"Did you do anything there that I should know about?" she asks, as a strange feeling of jealousy and a strong protectiveness begins to form over the possibility of other women being around him.

On hearing her response, she watches as her husband bursts into hysterical laughter.

The look on Sarah's face over her husband's outburst is a clear indicator that she is less than impressed. Her actions refine that point further still, as she reaches her hand deep into the bath until she finds the sponge she'd previously been pampering herself with. Taking a firm grip of the soaking wet and heavy sponge, she raises it up and proceeds to launch it in the direction of Chuck, and after a brief second, the sponge connects directly with the top of his head.

"Ow!" he screeches out in pain causing Sarah to snort briefly at the direct hit she had just landed.

"What the hell! Sarah, that hurt and now I'm soaking!" he complains as he raises his hands immediately to his head and attempts to rub the pain away while looking at his wife disgustedly for her actions to him.

"It will hurt a lot more if you don't tell me what happened in Vegas!" she retorts, the stern look on her face and the tone of her voice leaving no room for negotiation.

"Sarah, please allow me to explain the memory and hold off from the inquisitional death stares and the launching of objects at me for one second, ok?" he pleads.

"Make it quick, or else I'll find something else to throw!" she warns him in a deathly serious tone.

"Well um, you see, um," he pauses, now feeling evidently nervous over what his wife will do next "it didn't turn out to be actual Las Vegas. You know the place with the casino's, the hotels, that kind of thing..."

"You're pulling my leg. There's only one Vegas!" she interrupts as her eyes begin to glance for further weapons to launch at her husband if he's not telling her the truth and is being deceitful to hide something he may have possibly done in the city of sin.

"That's exactly what I thought!" He retorts and pauses briefly as the husband and wife stare into each others eyes "Which is why I was freaking out, as I'd never been to Vegas before, and still haven't fyi but this Vegas was actually Las Vecas national park, I swear on my life!"

 _Hmm, he seems to be telling the truth. I can tell by his body language. he is innocent. But I have never heard of this park._

"Ok, I'll give you the benefit of the doubt," she concedes. "Tell me all about our story in that exact moment please."

Chuck nods his head and Sarah waits a short moment as he likely dips into his memory bank before he starts speaking to her again.

"Well um, obviously we were very close to getting married, otherwise it wouldn't have been my stag party, heh. But anyway, in this memory that you have just had about us, I was preparing to depart for my bachelor party orchestrated by Devon, the whole gang were excited for Vegas but like I said, it turned out that we ended up camping in Las Vecas, only it was short lived..."

"What happened to make it short lived?" she asks whilst continuing to fight hard to attempt to remember even more than she already had.

"Bad guys crashed the party, yours too actually, it was just one gigantic nightmare, which is kind of what usually happens to us whenever something is going great." he admits with a sad smile which she returns to him.

"Anyway, yea, so we end up camping which was kind of lame to be honest, as I really was looking forward to Vegas, heh," he pauses as he then starts to gulp on noticing the wide stare reemerge on his wife's face once more.

"But um, back on topic, the memory you had is very real, as real as you can get! I'm not sure how much you can remember but I was fretting over what to wear."

Sarah nods her head, as a smile forms on her face on discovering that she had, had another memory of her husband, and of their time spent together, and also another powerful one, as it had taken place just before their marriage.

"I remember that, I can remember you asking for guidance on what to wear," she then informs him causing a huge trademark Bartowski grin to form on his face.

"Heh, yeah turns out I didn't really need much guidance at all, as it was ruined by the bad guys that I mentioned, and plus the whole fact that it wasn't Vegas."

"Tell me about the bad guys and what happened at our two parties," she demands and he nods his head.

"Well basically, it all started when my sister, that's Ellie of course had access to my dad's computer. It was very powerful and contained vital information on the intersect. Oh, by the way, my dad invented the intersect."

"Your dad invented the intersect?" she interrupts him as a look of horror and shock forms on her face.

Chuck gulps on hearing his wife's question.

"Yeah, um, sorry about that. It's caused a lot of damage to a lot of people but it also has been a force of good many times also."

"But back to our pre-wedding parties?" she diverts the topic as right now her only concern is learning everything about the memory that had just taken place.

"Yeah, so anyway, bad guys working for Volkoff Industries find out the location of the laptop, which turned out to be at my stag party because Devon had mistakenly brought the laptop with him and they seek to acquire it for their own rogue interests. Our parties are ruined, I find out that Ellie had been lying to me. Anyway, we get through it and have our rehearsal dinner, only for you to become very sick as you had been poisoned and you almost died. It took the combined collective efforts of everybody you have met again thus far plus Carina and Zondra also just to save you from certain death. By the way, Carina's career in the DEA washed up after she helped you. I think it's best I tell you now that I have offered her a job with Morgan in recent days and we're just waiting to hear back from her," he informs her and refreshes his wife's suppressed memory.

Sarah takes a moment to process her husband's recollection of events that had previously occurred and she attempts to restore her composure as everything he had just said was a lot to sink in.

"Wow, when did I last see her?" she asks as her brain fights hard in search of the answer to that question herself.

Chuck then takes a moment to think before responding. "We saw her a few times after our wedding and spoke on the phone. It's been quite a while. I'm sure she'd love to see you but um, I should probably depart now and I'll give you some privacy because, you know," he pauses, as he extends out his arms until they're pointing at her in the bath and he begins to cough and that's when she realizes that she's naked in the bath with only bubbles surrounding her and Chuck is inside the bathroom with her and they aren't exactly intimate again yet...

"Oh!" she pauses in brief embarrassment.

 _How long have we been in here like this? How much of me has he seen?_

"Right. Yeah, I didn't even think. Um, thank you," she manages to say, now feeling very flustered and is unable to make much eye contact with Chuck in embarrassment.

She watches as he begins to stand up from where he had been sitting on the floor of the bathroom. "I'm sorry I didn't tell you sooner by the way, I just got so carried away talking to you. It didn't really register with me either." he admits.

Sarah smiles warmly. "Chuck, it's ok. I _needed_ to know this. Thanks a lot. I'll be out soon. I don't think I'll be able to relax in here any longer after this memory. I need to get out and get my head around everything you've just told me," she admits.

Chuck nods his head as he backtracks towards the door slightly before stopping.

"Ok, I'll see you soon then," he then says.

"Yeah. See you soon," she replies as they smile at each other a final time, before Chuck then departs to give Sarah privacy once more.

On being alone inside the bathroom once more, a wide grin of happiness and contentment on Sarah's face forms. Her memories are slowly coming back to her. And she's having numerous of her husband. It gives her a newfound hope and determination that things will work out ok between them...

* * *

 **End of Chapter.**

* * *

AN/ So then gang, I promised a year ago that this chapter would include Chicken Pepperoni and a Doctor's Appointment. But it just went on too long that I've decided to split it and include those two things in the following chapter.

So the upcoming chapter/s will include the following; Chicken Pepperoni, a Sarah and Morgan moment, a Doctor's Appointment for Sarah with a Buy More ballerina girl (very first episode of Chuck) esque moment and maybe a conversation between Sarah, Chuck, Molly and Emma if the chapter doesn't go on too long. We'll see. I could have included Chicken Pepperoni this chapter but I'm already at nearly 11,000 words and first I need to see if there's people still here to share the story with me after my absence :)

In closing, I hope that you enjoyed this chapter, it may not have had chicken pepperoni but it contains a lot. If you could be absolute sweethearts and leave me a review, I will be eternally grateful. Thank you!


	6. Chapter 6

**AN/ Hey gang! This is a quick update since Chapter Five so if you haven't read it yet, then please do! Also review it too! :)** **I think this might be my best chapter, probably across all of my fics. I loved it.** **I loved it so much I couldn't wait to share it!** **So there will be no Doctor's this chapter nor Sarah & Morgan, nor the four way conversation between Chuck, Sarah, Molly and Emma. But it is all coming in Seven, I PROMISE!**

 **Anyway, that's enough of this AN, I just want to share my most favorite chapter!**

* * *

 **All Roads Lead Back Home**

 **Chapter Six**

* * *

 **Four days since the beach**

Sarah has just finished drying herself after what started out as a lovely relaxing bath but quickly turned into something a million times more powerful and eventful after having experienced yet another memory of her past life with Chuck. Only this time, she was able to share it together for the first time in person with the man with whom she has spent the past five years of her life with. This was part of the reason why she had returned to him yesterday, as when she gets these memories, of which she is now sure that many more will return at some point, then he deserves to be present with her on her experiencing them. The moment did turn slightly awkward at the conclusion however, on them both coming to the realisation that they were sharing the memory together whilst Sarah was stark naked in the bathtub merely concealed by just soapy bubbles in the warm water she was bathing in.

A wry smile starts to escape Sarah's lips as her mind starts to recall her encounter with her husband just a short while ago. Laughter then briefly threatens to escape her lips as she then re-imagines and fondly re-pictures the look of embarrassment present on her husband's face on them realizing the position that they were in.

 _He's so cute when he's embarrassed. But I hope dinner is ready soon. I'm really hungry. Though I had better hurry, or I won't be ready in time which is not fair, as he has spent a long time preparing it for us._

Standing in the centre of the bathroom, Sarah then moves to wrap the towel she had used to dry herself with completely around her before right on cue, her stomach begins to rumble and she takes that as the necessary indicator for her to seek out her husband to enquire as to just how much time she has to change before it's served. If their dinner is ready or near to be ready then she will have to change faster than she ever has in her life because he has spent the past ninety or so minutes preparing and cooking dinner for her and the very least she can do is show her gratitude by not letting the meal go cold while she takes an ice-age to get herself ready. She then departs the bathroom, to see out Chuck...

 _x-x-x-x-x-x-x_

Chuck is presently inside of his kitchen and he is now just applying the finishing touches to tonight's meal. He is very much looking forward to eating dinner with Sarah again tonight.

He has been very careful to ensure that he cooks tonight's dinner and his wife's favorite meal better than he ever has before. He wants everything to be perfect for her. He knows that his wife is uncertain as to whether she will like it or not, but he is one hundred percent convinced that his wife was being genuine on previous occasions when she had stated that she loved it, and that she wasn't just trying to make him feel better in saying so.

The only brief mishap in his routine this evening was when his wife screamed out to him causing him to think something had happened to her as he instantly abandoned his cooking activities and he rushed to her aide faster than he ever had before only to learn that she was completely safe and that she instead had, had another memory of him and of their time together, causing him to feel so happy that he could scream with joy. His insides in fact are still screaming with joy right now over the moment shared together with his wife, the massive grin on his face a clear and evident indicator of his happiness and joy. Thankfully however, all of the preparation of the cooking was over and their dinner was slowly cooking when he had rushed to her aide, otherwise the dinner would have been ruined and quite possibly the upcoming night spent with his wife along with it.

However, on returning to the dinner after coming to his wife's aide, it was still coming along fine. And his wife's latest remembering of their time together has given him fresh hope that he will one day be able to win his wife back. Moving back and forth as he whistles happily away to his favorite present tune he glances briefly down the hallway and oh boy what a mistake that just was as he stops dead in his tracks and all former thoughts and the tune he was formerly whistling to clear and evaporates from his brain. What used to consist of his brain is now mush.

 _Crikey! Is she trying to kill me!_

His eyes can't help but gape as his wife is now walking towards him. Normally that action wouldn't cause him to be rendered speechless, though he's not sure about that fact, as any time he had ever looked at her he mostly felt like that, but that's a debate for a different time... The exact reason for his loss of functioning right now is that his wife heading right towards him in nothing more than a towel which only seems to cover from the top of her thighs to the top of her chest.

He starts to blink rapidly in succession, with his stare not leaving her once in what feels like an eternity until she stops dead in the kitchen close to him.

 _You're so beautiful..._

He allows his eyes to linger on his wife for a short moment longer though it feels like an lifetime and he only stops his stare when she begins to wave her hand in the air at him.

He immediately snaps out of his stare on noting his wife's physical action and he gives his head a good wobble in fear of his wife deeming him to be a stalker.

 _Don't gape at her, Chuck… You promised to take things slowly with her. But surely she must know what she is doing to me? This is so unfair. How can I stay composed and respectful when she comes out like that! I don't know how much longer I can go concealing my thoughts, emotions and desires from her before I spontaneously combust! This is torture of it's highest kind. I would sooner be in Thailand again right now!_

Chuck then fixes to meet his gaze together with his wife's as he makes proper extended eye contact with her and he smiles embarrassingly at her.

"There you are," he hears her joke in a humorous tone causing his fluster to extend further.

He pauses his response, as he has the sudden urge to nervously cough. "Sorry, um," he pauses as he coughs in guilt over his behaviour once more. "Got kind of a little bit distracted," he says sheepishly as he makes an awkward grimace over his actions. Right now he feels pretty shameful, in a kind of way as if had been peeking on his neighbour that was in the process of visibly changing and was caught doing it.

"A little?" She jokes and he can once more detect the playful humour in her tone.

"Ok, a lot," he concedes as he begins to chuckle slightly in acceptance and he watches as she laughs and a cute smile forms on her face.

"But was there something you need?" he enquires as he waits, his eyes now locked in continuous eye contact with his wife, daring not to lower it in fear of gaping once more.

He watches as she nods her head.

"I was just checking how long it was until dinner is ready? Do I have time to change?" she asks.

 _No, don't change. Stay like that forever._

"Oh you have plenty of time," he says reassuringly.

She smiles.

"Are you sure?" she asks.

He nods his head.

"Yeah, I'd say it has at least," he pauses momentarily as his glance shifts to check his wristwatch briefly before fixing his glance back on his wife once more. "twenty minutes left."

 _Does it? I don't know, I can't think straight. I don't know what two plus two is right now. I don't think my wife being a deadly spy will kill me. Her beauty will. She absolutely is my 'Fatal Attraction'_

"Ok then, I'd better be quick though, or it will go cold," she states.

He nods his head acceptingly. He is unable to think of any logical, coherent sentence to breathe out to her right now so it's safer to not speak at all.

 _I love you, I love you, I love you! Marry me! You idiot! We're already married. No biggie, marry me again!_

"I'll be quick," she informs him and he nods his head once more and he watches as she then turns and begins to backtrack away from him.

Chuck quickly turns away as soon as Sarah did so as to not stare at his wife's rear as she walks away from him. If he did that, his blood pressure might quickly explode and he may die on the spot before having the chance to eat his world famous Chicken Pepperoni…

On now facing the oven, he gives his head a good final shake in an attempt to restart his brain, or else he'll have a serious accident in the kitchen that will send him to the ER and keep him away from her which would not be cool.

 _My beautiful wife is so deadly in every single sense of the word!_

* * *

 **A short while later…**

Sarah has just sat down in the dining area of her home shared with Chuck. She had taken almost the full twenty minutes to dress and she is wearing casual jeans and a blouse. The dinner table had already been set with two plates and typical dining room accessories such as cutlery and seasonings available on the table. Sarah has no time for any kind of thought or reflection as Chuck has just appeared in her view. She smiles at him as he continues walking in her direction.

"Dinner is served, M'lady," he says humorously and she begins to laugh on hearing his words as her glance shifts between Chuck and the dish of food that he is carrying in hand. Her eyes can't help but widen on how delicious it really does look.

"If it tastes as good as it looks, I'm going to love it. It looks delicious, Chuck," she informs him, a wide smile now present on her freshened up, elegant young face.

She watches him grin in response to her words. "Sarah, it's your favourite, trust me," he says, confidently.

She nods in acceptance of his request. "I do," she admits as her glance continues to shift between Chuck and tonight's dinner as her appetite suddenly increase ten-fold.

 _Wow, I really am hungry! This looks delicious_

She watches as he arrives at the table and he places the dish in the middle of the table as he then moves to sit down opposite her.

A brief silence ensues, as an anticipation of what to expect takes hold. The young couple are moments away from what feels like an important moment in the rekindling of relationship. If Chuck is right, and this really is her favorite food, then it will further cement her need to trust him.

They continue to look at each other, as Sarah feels butterflies begin to build up in her stomach as she recognizes how important the moment is.

He then starts to speak, and she interprets his desire to do so stemming from that he can probably not bear the anticipation and anxiety of whether she is actually going to like it or not any longer. "Tuck in then," he says with a smile.

"Ok," she agrees with a nod of her head, before she then takes her fork in her left hand and she slowly begins to edge it towards the dish before connecting the fork solidly onto a piece of chicken, before retrieving it and lifting it up into the air, before finishing with it now on her plate.

She pauses briefly, to smile at him, who returns the smile and gaze as he takes a portion for himself.

 _Please taste delicious. I don't know how he will react if I don't like it. I could fake it maybe, to not break his heart if I don't like it..._

Moving to take her knife into her right hand, she then brings them both together as she grips the chicken with the fork in her left hand and begins to cut it with the knife in her right. On separating the portion she is about to sample, she looks anxiously at Chuck a final time before raising the fork up to her mouth. She pauses briefly, with it at her lips as she takes in its smell, before finally taking the leap of faith and placing it into her mouth and releasing the fork with the contents now firmly in her mouth. She pauses, as her sense of taste begins to work overtime to establish whether she likes what she has just placed into her mouth or not, she won't know that for sure until she begins to finally chew the contents, which she now does. It takes her a few chews until she can ascertain whether she likes it or not and by god, this may possibly be the most delicious thing she's ever tasted in her life.

 _He was right_ she thinks as a sparkle begins to take form in her eye.

Unable to control his gaping curiosity, he asks, "How is it then?"

Hearing his question to her, she pauses all thought as she had become lost in one of the best dishes she has ever tasted as she raises her eyes stares into his eyes and a smile forms from her face from her now empty mouth.

"It's nice."

 _Nice? This might possibly be the most divine thing I have ever tasted in my life!_

She watches as a wide grin forms on his face.

"I knew you'd like it," he declares lovingly with his wide smile formed.

She laughs briefly. "Like? I love it," she confesses and pauses as he chuckles approvingly at her for a moment.

"Chuck this is lovely, thank you so much," she says sincerely and watches as he maintains his loving grin.

 _I can get used to that smile. I already have._

"Heh," he laughs out cutely.

Hearing his loving outburst, she smiles at him before averting her glance away from his eyes to look down at their plates.

"Aren't you going to eat yours?" she asks, on noticing he hadn't taken a bite of his own serving yet.

"I was waiting to see if you liked it or not otherwise I was going to order something else," he admits.

A sad smile forms on her face over his revelation and she pauses and distracts herself from eating momentarily to reply to him instead.

"Chuck, you don't need to pause your life and wait around on me." she pauses, as she gazes into his eyes and tries to reinforce her point with warm, loving facial gestures. She continues, "Please, live your life how you normally do. Please don't change who you are just to accommodate my memory loss. Even if it makes me feel uncomfortable, don't hesitate to be yourself around me. The Sarah that you know and love and not the one present right now wouldn't want that ok?"

She watches as he nods his head. Though she's sure that her pleas hadn't registered with him and his nod wasn't a genuine confirmation that he actually agrees with her words so she continues further. "No Chuck, please promise me,"

He pauses, before grinning widely at her. "I promise, Sarah."

She can still detect that her point still hadn't registered with him. But she decides to let it lie otherwise their dinner will go cold.

"So tuck in then," she encourages him and he nods his head as both the husband and wife then start to eat their dinner together...

* * *

It has been a few minutes and Chuck and Sarah are about halfway through eating their dinner together. Chuck is deliriously happy and on cloud nine right now on learning that Chicken Pepperoni really is his wife's favorite food. Tonight couldn't have been more perfect thus far for Chuck. First his wife had, had another memory of him and of their time together and now he has just been blessed with being able to bring joy and happiness to his wife in providing her with her favorite food.

"Oh shoot, I knew I forgot something!" he says suddenly and he watches as his wife pauses from eating to look right at him over his outburst.

"What?" she asks.

"One moment," he replies, before taking a stand. "I'll be right back!" he says as he quickly rushes out into the kitchen and he opens the refrigerator before retrieving a bottle of red wine and closing the refrigerator door before hurrying back to the dining area in the presence of his wife once more who had now paused from eating and was watching him intently.

"I'm sorry, I don't know if you want to even drink right now but we usually have red wine with our meal," he informs her.

She smiles warmly at him before replying, "It's fine. I actually feel like a drink right now."

Hearing her response, a grin forms as he then retrieves the corkscrew laid out on the dining table as he prepares to open the bottle of wine but stops when she interrupts him and he pauses his actions.

"I suppose this is my favorite too?" she asks humorously.

He nods his head as he emits a brief chuckle before jokingly replying, "Yeah. It's _our_ favorite. Don't worry, it's not poison"

He watches as a wide grin forms on his face before she sarcastically replies, "Har, Har!"

On hearing his wife's humour, Chuck starts to laugh and he watches as his wife's smile continues and they gaze into each other's eyes. On finishing opening the contents of the wine, he then moves to pour his wife a glass and then one for himself.

On sitting back down, his joyful persona turns serious. "I shouldn't joke, I can't imagine what its like to lose my memory," he admits.

She smiles warmly at him. "Chuck, its ok. If I can't laugh about it, then I'll cry," she admits.

A sad smile forms on his face on hearing her declaration and he watches as she picks up her wine glass in her hand, causing him to do the same. "You can talk to me any time, about anything Sarah, I really mean that," he says sincerely.

He watches as his wife pauses her actions and they gaze at each other once more and she smiles at him before moving her free arm to touch his own briefly from where they are seated.

"Cheers," he says in a change of topic on his wife not responding to his offering.

"Cheers," she replies as they move to touch their glasses together before they shift their attention back to eating their dinner once more.

A short moment passes and the husband and wife are still eating together when Chuck breaks the brief silence and Sarah looks at him as he begins to talk once more. "Um, Sarah, can I ask you something" he asks as he pauses from eating once more and watches as she does the same.

"Chuck, you can ask me anything, what is it?" she quickly responds.

He pauses for the briefest of moments to gather his thoughts before asking, "Um, you can tell me to mind my own business if you want. But um, have you thought about seeing a doctor over your memory loss. Maybe they could help?"

He waits as she pauses to likely gather her thoughts and Chuck takes the time to nervously take a sip of his wine in fear of her telling him to mind his own business.

"That's actually a good idea, Chuck," she pauses as a huge Bartowski grin takes shape on his face, to which she responds with a weaker version. "I was actually thinking about it in my mom's,"

"Great!" he replies immediately with pure, uncontrolled enthusiasm. "I can go and arrange that for you right now!"

On finishing speaking, he begins to stand but is stopped when Sarah grabs his arm causing him to freeze in place.

"Easy, Chuck, it can wait until after dinner. We'll speak about it then, ok?" she warns.

With pure excitement now running through his veins, he protests, "But Sarah," he pauses to check his watch, "if I hurry, I could get you an appointment for tomorrow."

She continues her grip on his arm. "Chuck, you haven't finished your dinner. I won't feel comfortable or at ease if you don't eat what you have spent the past two hours preparing and cooking. We don't need to rush. I can wait to see a doctor until next week. All that matters to me in my mind right now is watching you enjoying the lovely meal that you have made us, ok?" she stresses once more but is talking on deaf ears causing her to get a bit visibly frustrated.

He attempts to protest once more. Still built up with pure excitement on Sarah agreeing with his suggestion. "But Sarah..."

She responds more sternly this time, with a wide stare that is enough to unsettle him as he knows that stare his wife has just given him. "Chuck, I'm not asking you, I'm telling you. I won't hear any more talk of me visiting a doctor until after dinner so sit back down and eat like a good boy,"

He gulps on his wife finishing talking and he reluctantly moves to take his seat at the table once more.

"Good boy," she says smugly, he can see the look of satisfaction now present on her face.

"I'm not a boy, I'm a man," he playfully but proudly protests on sitting back down as ordered.

"No, you're a nerd," she responds and he watches as a wide grin forms on her face and he winces in mock hurt.

"Ouch, that's about the thousandth time you've done that to me," he protests causing her to laugh at him satisfactorily.

"Oh, I'm sure," she states causing him to smirk in response, before he continues to resume eating because the faster they finish, the quicker he can start to talk about helping Sarah in any way that he can. When Sarah admitted she had wanted to and agreed to seeing a doctor, the joy and relief on Chuck was evident for all to see. Yes, he had gotten a little carried away with himself but that was an understandable reaction for a man whose wife had just had all known memory of him forcibly suppressed. Chuck is feeling so elated right now that she has agreed with him.

He pauses from eating himself as he gazes at his wife as she takes yet another mouthful of food into her mouth and a smile of satisfaction forms on his face.

"I told you that you'd love it," he declares and he watches as she pauses eating to look at him and a smile forms on her face once more.

"You were right." she concedes to him.

"Actually, I think you owe me an apology. Several actually, as my feelings are still hurt from being called a boy and a nerd," he states and he watches as his words cause her to laugh.

"Don't push it buster. You're getting just one apology from me tonight," she warns causing him to grin.

"Fair enough. Let's hear it then."

She concedes. "I'm sorry for being so apprehensive about Chicken Pepperoni. I can't believe I even doubted you, Chuck, I love it."

Hearing his wife's apology causes his wide grin to extend further still. He can't resist adding in another playful jab at her. "How about the wine?" he asks causing her to snort briefly at his humour.

"Lovely too. Perfect actually. I didn't doubt that one though, so you're not getting an apology for that," she says with a smile.

He smiles in response, before jokingly replying, "Only because you had no time to doubt it. Maybe that's why I pretended to forget about it,"

He watches as his wife laughs out a suppressed laugh. "Touche," she then admits.

Deciding to continue engaging in playful banter, he continues, "By the way, I hope you know that you're doing the dishes after all of the complaining you've been doing all day about my famous Chicken Pepperoni!" on finishing his joke, he takes the final bite of his food and watches as she nods her head acceptingly.

"Gladly! This was so nice that I wish there were seconds," she admits and he watches as her gaze shifts between the empty plates and the dish and then back at him with a wide smile.

A look of amazement forms on his face on hearing her words. "Wow, you really enjoyed it that much huh?" he asks and pauses as she nods at him. "I don't think you've taken seconds before."

She laughs briefly. "Well this time I wish I could. I really need and should learn how to make it myself,"

On hearing her words, Chuck begins to vehemently shake his head in disagreement before replying. "No chance, it's my secret dish. I'm going to use it to keep you with me for the rest of your life."

He watches as she starts to laugh deeply at him causing him to fill up with happiness. "I'm not joking," he then says humorously which causes her to smile.

"I could always torture you to extract the recipe out of you," She states, playfully.

"I won't talk," as he furiously shakes his head sideways to reinforce his point.

He watches as a smile forms. "Everyone talks," she states and he continues his head shaking.

"Not me," he states confidently.

"We'll see," she replies as they continue to stare at each other, smiles as wide as bananas.

"You won't hurt me, you kinda agreed to that when we married," he jokes before continuing further, "You can't break your wedding vows, Sarah, cardinal sin."

Their stare and smiles at each other continue.

"I'm sure there's a loophole somewhere," she states playfully.

He starts to shake his head sideways once more, before humorously replying, "Nuh-uh. It's locked and sealed, Missy, you're trapped."

He watches as she laughs on hearing his response, and he continues to grin lovingly at her for a long moment, before attempting to turn the conversation serious once more.

"But Sarah, now that we've finished, can we talk about arranging a trip for you to see a neurologist?" he asks and he watches intently as she nods her head in acceptance.

"Ok," she then agrees verbally causing the biggest grin of the night to shrine through his young face.

"Thank you. Look, Sarah, I shouldn't have tried to force that on you a little earlier but I care about you so much." he pauses, as he stares right into her eyes to reinforce his declaration. "I can't put into words how much I care about you but moving on because I know you'll get uncomfortable if I carry on, I really think you can benefit from seeing a neurologist, even if you get nowhere, at least you'll have some clarity and know where you stand," he states, passionately.

He watches as she nods her head in agreement, before responding, I agree, Chuck. And so does my Mom, actually."

He begins to quirk his eyebrows on hearing his wife's admission before querying, "Does she?"

She nods her head before admitting, "Yeah, actually she suggested that I see one too."

Chuck takes a moment to process the information given to him before replying, "So can I arrange it for you then?"

He watches as she takes a moment to process his question to her. "Chuck, I could arrange it myself," she protests.

He responds almost immediately. "Sarah, I don't want to belittle you and this isn't me doing that so please don't think it…" he pauses and she nods. "But you are no longer a CIA employee and so you don't get healthcare any more. And all of our accounts are joint. I don't know your money situation right now but I don't see how you can pay for it,"

She interrupts him in an attempt at protest over his blunt facts, "Chuck..."

He quickly interrupts her once more. "Sarah, please let me finish and then you can speak all you want," he stresses and she concedes and nods. "You're my wife, Sarah. Let me tell you right now: I would spend every last cent I had to make you better."

She interrupts him again "Chuck, it doesn't have to be expensive."

He interrupts her again. "Sarah, please," he pauses, as his eyes begin to plead with her. "Please, allow me to do this for you. I don't even have to come with you. Just please, can you allow me to do this one thing for you?"

There's a pause, and he watches as his wife begins to fight an inner battle. She was always too proud to ask for or accept help. He watches as a resigned smile begins to then form on her face, and he knows that he has now got his own way.

"Ok," she agrees and pure happiness erupts on his face and his mood instantly changes to that of euphoria.

"Oh Sarah, thank you!" he pauses, as he reaches out to take her hand and sports her the most loving grin that he could ever possibly muster. "I'll get you the best neurologist in the country!"

"Chuck... You don't have to do that," she protests once more.

Chuck shakes his head in disagreement, before responding, "Sarah, I do. Money doesn't matter to me. I am looking right now at what matters most to me in this world," he states, as he stares right into his wife's eyes until he notes that it begins to get a little uncomfortable for her and he lays off on the intensity a little in fear of undoing everything that has just happened and lets go of her hand, though reluctantly.

"I'll arrange it for you," he says but pauses to look at his wristwatch. "In fact, I'll go and do it right now, whilst it's still reasonably early. They may be able to get you an appointment for tomorrow or at the latest the next day."

He watches, as his wife processes the information he had just told her. "Ok," she then responds and they smile at each other a final time before Chuck moves to stand up.

On standing, he then says, "I'll try not to be too long,"

"Take your time," she responds almost immediately and he nods his head before then turning and quickly heading off to arrange to have his wife professionally seen by the best possible neurologist that he could possibly find...

* * *

 **An hour later**

Sarah has just finished cleaning up from the most delicious meal that she can ever remember eating and she is now in the process of putting back away all of the plates, dishes and cutlery and she is starting to get a little tired and Chuck has been gone for roughly an hour. She is getting ready to turn in for the night though she is not sure where she will be sleeping tonight, nor if she will be sleeping alone, or next to him in some capacity. They had slept together on the sofa the previous night, and she has to admit, she liked it a lot. She's sure that if she is to sleep alone in their bedroom tonight, she won't enjoy or feel at home anywhere near as much as she felt last night, that is once they had made their way out to the sofa together. She had attempted to get off to sleep in their master bedroom on her own, but she had been tossing and turning for a long time before deciding that she needed to get herself a drink and to try and get off to sleep before it became daylight only to find her husband not in the guest room but out in their lounge on the sofa instead.

 _I hope we can sleep together again tonight. But Preferably in a bed again too, like we had when Quinn sent me back here. Only this time it will be so much different. He thinks that I need space from him right now. But I don't think that I do. He's the kindest, most compassionate and funny guy that I've ever met. I really like him. It would go a long way if I told him this. But I'm not good with emotions and stating how I feel..._

Just as she is in the process of putting away the last plate, she can see movement out in the hall. She quickly puts away the plate, before turning her attention to look into the hallway and she can see Chuck walking back towards her. On him arriving in close talking distance, he smiles at her, which she returns, as she watches as he stops dead in his tracks.

"I'm sorry I was so long. I had to do a bit of research into which neurologists are available and their backgrounds and such. I then retrieved the contact details and I've arranged it all. You have an appointment tomorrow at 5pm with a one Dr Jake Williams, MD," he informs her with a wide grin and she takes a brief moment to process his information given to her.

"Wow, that soon?" she asks in amazement and he nods his head at her. "Chuck, I'm sure that has cost a lot. You didn't need to do that."

He responds instantly without any hesitation, "Yes I did. I'm glad I did it and I don't regret it. I will do anything for you, Sarah."

She pauses, as she begins to fill up with a wide range of emotions ranging from happiness to admiration, to joy, to love...

A sparkle forms in her eye and she almost feels as if she is about to well up which causes her to speak immediately to prevent any form of extreme emotion from showing. "Thank you, Chuck," she states emotionally. She'd thought that she had done a good job of concealing her emotion, but she hadn't. And she knows that he had noticed it too, but he let it slide.

"You're welcome," he states, a wide loving grin that she is becoming so used to seeing present on his face.

She smiles back.

"I have really enjoyed tonight, Chuck," she states warmly.

"Sarah, I have too," he responds, using the same tone.

She watches, as he then averts his eyes away from her for the first time since he returned and she watches him intently as she notes him surveying their dinner table and a wry smile forms on her face on knowing that he'll likely now enquire why she did all of the dishes without his help.

 _It's my home too, Chuck._

"Um, Sarah?" he starts and she can't help herself from a brief suppressed laugh. _Here it comes. I'm starting to get to know him as much as he knows me._

"Yes, Chuck?" she asks with a wry smile.

"Why did you do all of the cleaning up? I could have helped you," he states, his tone sincere and full of truth.

She laughs briefly, before responding tongue in cheek, " _You_ told me that I was doing all of the dishes tonight."

He responds instantly, "Sarah, I was just joking. I could have helped you."

"Well I wasn't joking. If you cook, I clean," she states bluntly with a loving smile.

 _It's my home too._

She watches as a grin forms on his face, she continues her smile. "Well in that case, the same applies to you. If you cook, I clean," he states playfully.

"We'll see," she retorts playfully.

"We won't see anything, Missy. It's not up for debate." he states causing her to smile in response to him.

"Oh, Sarah?" he then says.

"Yeah?" she asks as she continues to gaze at him and watches intently as he averts his glance away from her slightly and she watches as he moves to pick up some information.

"I've been meaning to do this since you got back. This paperwork here is all of the necessary information required for our joint accounts," he pauses, as he attempts to pass over the paperwork to her.

On his words to her, coupled with the paperwork he is attempting to pass to her, she immediately attempts to protest "Chuck..."

He interrupts her, his eyes pleading in a way that she finds hard to resist. "Sarah, please. It's yours. Even if things don't work out between us, half of it is yours," he states matter-of-factly.

Feeling too exhausted to argue with him, she takes the paperwork in hand and immediately begins to gasp on reading how much money is in the account.

"Chuck, I can't," she protests, her mouth agape.

"You can, and you will," he states, confidently.

She is about to protest once more and he continues, "Sarah, if you refuse then I'll just continue nagging on and on and on and on at you until you either give way, or remove my tongue, heh, so please save me from the pain from having my tongue removed and just accept that this is going to happen."

A smile forms on her face and brief laughter starts to emit on hearing her husband's words.

"Have I ever won an argument with you?" she concedes as she looks at him in amazement over his persuasion skills.

"Plenty," he retorts immediately, a wide grin formed on his face.

"I wish I could remember them. I could use a victory right now," she laughs and she watches as he begins to chuckle with her.

"Oh I'm sure you'll remember plenty of them, in time," he jokes causing her to laugh again.

"I hope so!" she retorts, as they gaze at each other adoringly from where they are stood together.

"It's getting late though, I should probably turn in for the night," he admits.

She nods her head in complete agreement before responding, "Me too."

 _Are we going to sleep together again tonight?_

"Oh hey, Sarah, um by the way, have you spoken to your Mom since you got back?" he asks causing Sarah to pause from her thoughts of any kind of intimacy with Chuck as her brain begins to contemplate his question to her instead.

"Not yet," she admits. "It's still kind of a surprise that she's now safe. Is she truly one hundred percent safe though, Chuck? I'm sorry for asking you again, it's just..."

He replies immediately, his tone honest and powerful "Sarah, I understand. Look at me," he pauses, as she does as instructed and gazes into his alluring eyes. "On my life, I promise you that your Mom is safe from any further harm, and Molly too, ok?"

She nods her head, with no doubt in her mind whatsoever that her husband is telling her the truth. Her brief feeling of concern for her family members being replaced with admiration and warmth for the man standing infront of her. "What about you, have you spoken with her since I arrived?" she asks him as her own curiosity is now interested to know if he has spoken to her mother.

He shakes his head no, before responding, "No, I was worried about going behind your back. You may not have liked it."

Sarah starts to frown in minor annoyance briefly. "Chuck, what did I tell you when we ate dinner? She is your family. Please don't change to accommodate the present me."

"You're right. I just don't want to do something to upset you," he admits and she can't help but take hold of his hand with her own once more.

 _Taking hold of his hand is becoming a common occurrence._

It's now her turn to request he make eye contact with her, "Chuck, look at me," she pauses as he makes eye contact with her "You're not doing anything to upset me. The only way I am going to get upset is if you change who you are to accommodate me, ok?"

He nods his head in acceptance of her request.

 _He's scared of losing me. Of me walking out on him. He's the nicest guy I've ever met. By quite some margin. I don't plan on going anywhere. I'm enjoying all of my time with him. It would go a long way if I actually told him this though… Maybe if we went out on a date or something then I could show my actual interest in him without actually telling him. Surely he would then know how I'm feeling right now..._

She watches as he then begins to yawn. "Maybe it's time for bed," he says.

She nods her head in acceptance as she awaits any further comment from him.

"I'll see you tomorrow then?" he asks and Sarah can't mask the disappointment now evident on her face. _I guess we'll be sleeping alone tonight then... Can I at least get a kiss from you, maybe I'll be able to sleep better alone if you can at least give me that?_

"Yeah..." she replies dejectedly over their evident sleeping arrangements for tonight. She continues to gaze at him, as he begins to walk into her vicinity and she doesn't flinch as she holds her ground and invites him to do whatever he is wishing to do. He moves to embrace her, to which she reciprocates as her hands find their way up his back until landing on his shoulders. They stay locked like this for a long moment, until pulling back and he smiles at her, which she returns.

 _Hell, if he won't do it, then I sure as hell will!_

Just as he is about to pull back and put some distance between themselves, she pulls him right back in place, and she locks her eyes with his own once more, before moving her head in motion towards his. And after a brief hesitation, she watches as he adjusts himself until their lips connect themselves together. Sarah closes her eyes on feeling the touch of her husband, and their lips stay locked together for a long moment and as she is just about to deepen it, he pulls back and smiles lovingly at her.

"Goodnight Sarah," he says adoringly.

"Goodnight," is all she can reply, her breath taken and a fire lit deep inside of her for the man now separated from her proximity.

She watches him as he walks along the hallway, before disappearing out from sight and into the guest room.

 _Yes… I'm very much going to need to take control of this relationship if it's to progress to where I want it to right now..._

 **End of Chapter**

* * *

AN/ I hope you enjoyed today's chapter. There is only one way for me to know: Leave a review and let me know!

Next Chapter; Morgan and Sarah, Sarah's Doctor's Appointment. Should I give way and tell you if Chuck gets his own way and gets to go with her? Of course I should! Of course he does! Also there will be a moment between Chuck & Sarah similar to when Chuck helped the Ballerina girl in canon, and finally, a four way conversation between Chuck, Sarah, Emma and Molly.

See you all soon :)


	7. Chapter 7

Hey gang! Thank you for the reviews :) I always reply to every single one, so this is an extra thanks to the guests who I can not reply to.

We have now arrived at a big moment, several actually in the restoration of Charah's relationship as you will see this chapter.

I know Sarah's life doesn't have much of a plan right now. But trust me guys. _I_ have the plan. My vision for the story will all begin to become clear very shortly :)

Also, there's a little ice between the two right now and dialogue is limited because they're both nervous and reserved for different reasons which will begin to be explained in the coming chapters. Luckily, I'm qualified enough to break it. Hang in there with me!

Word Count for this Chapter: 12,988

* * *

 **All Roads Lead Back Home**

 **Chapter Seven**

* * *

 **Five days since the beach**

It is early morning in Los Angeles and Sarah is awake and she is now beginning her third day back in her home shared together with her husband. Though she is not presently feeling as if she is sharing it with him right now. Rather, in her mind, she is feeling as if she is merely a guest of his. Sarah just can't seem to shake the feeling from her mind that it feels wrong for a husband and wife to be sleeping in two separate beds under the same roof. She may not be his wife right now. But it's beyond evident that Sarah already has a strong attraction to him again. And she's also certain that his feelings towards her are infinitely more powerful as he can remember the whole five years of being with her. If they didn't like or were at odds with each other then separate beds would be understandable. But on the contrary, everything that has taken place between Sarah and Chuck since Sarah arrived at the beach attempting to find herself five days ago has been nothing short of perfect.

Sarah has now just departed the master bedroom from where she had slept alone last night. Not that she had done much sleeping, as she had been restlessly tossing and turning throughout most of the night. And it is safe to say that her restlessness hasn't left her in the best of moods nor the most approachable of people to be around this morning.

On exiting the room, she begins to head straight for the kitchen, noting on her way that the bathroom seems to be presently occupied.

 _Good. Hopefully it will give me some time to wake up and snap out of this foul mood that I'm feeling right now. I know he told me that I'm not a guest, but in every sense of the word, that's exactly what I am right now. I'm just his guest._ _I came back to him to see if we can rebuild what was taken from us._ _I know it has only been a few days since I reconnected with him again. But those days have been perfect._ _H_ _ow can we rebuild what we lost, if he is refusing to let me back_ _in and expose himself to me_ _once more?_

Sarah has now arrived in the kitchen and she immediately proceeds to make herself some much needed coffee…

 _x-x-x-x-x-x-x_

 **A short while later**

Chuck has just finished showering and has changed into some lounge wear. He hadn't slept very well last night. He had managed to stay inside of the guest room the whole night. He had wanted to return to the sofa again, but he didn't want his wife to notice his grief that he is presently experiencing if she were to encounter him again as she had done the previous night. She is going through a lot right now and the last thing that he wishes to be is a burden to her, or she might decide it's too much and take off. There is nothing more that Chuck would love than to be sleeping next to her in _their_ bed once more. But he can't shake from his mind everything that had occurred when she had returned to him as Quinn's agent and when she had considered him her enemy and he tried to connect their toes as they always did only for her to give him the cold shoulder. He's scared to sleep together with her again, in fear of his memories of his wife tainting and remembering her differently than how she was before Quinn had captured her.

Chuck now begins to depart the bathroom and on doing so he notices the door to their bedroom now opened and a smile immediately forms on his face on likely being moments away from seeing his wife for the first time this morning. Walking slowly, he pauses at the door to their bedroom and he peeks his head inside the room to see if she is still in there, to which she is not. He then continues out and back into the hallway once more until he lands in the kitchen of their home. Pausing briefly, he glances around until he finds the destination of his wife. She's presently sitting at their dining table with a mug in her hands and facing in his direction. His smile forms once more at the sight of her and he departs the kitchen slightly, as he then pauses to a stop as he moves to lean into a block of foundation of their home.

He watches as she notes his presence as she glances at him and it also doesn't go amiss that she doesn't seem to replicate his warm facial expressions to her.

"Good morning," he declares lovingly to her, his smile still formed.

 _Is it? I feel terrible. I slept much better the night before._

"Hi," she responds in a distant tone.

"Did you sleep well?" he asks sincerely with his continued smile.

"No," she replies in a kind of tone that causes his smile to now fade on sensing that his wife may have woken up on the wrong side of bed this morning.

"Me neither," he then says softly.

He waits briefly for her response and to see if she has any intentions of engaging in conversation with him right now but she doesn't respond causing him to become slightly nervous.

 _Hmm. She seems a bit moody this morning. Has she just had a bad night or is there an underlying reason for her abrupt nature with me this morning?_

"Is everything ok?" he then asks, softly.

He watches as his wife seems to get a bit visibly agitated by his presence right now.

"Can you stop asking me silly questions at this hour of the morning, Chuck?" she replies to him bluntly.

Hearing his wife's bluntness causes him to do a double take. She's behaving pretty detached and quite coldly with him this morning. This is the first time since before the beach that he hasn't felt a positive vibe from her.

"I'm sorry if I have done something wrong," he says accompanied with a sympathetic smile.

He watches as his wife pauses and she gazes at him. "Chuck, I'm sorry. I don't mean to bite your head off I just haven't slept very well and I've got out of bed the wrong side this morning," she admits as he then watches as she takes another sip of her coffee.

He nods his head acceptingly at his wife's words before trying one last time to perk up the mood by engaging in humour with her instead.

"I'd better not say anything more and I will stay out of your hair then. Or else you might decide to impale me like you did an alarm clock many years ago. Heh," he says humorously but his humour disintegrates on watching as his wife immediately spits out her coffee and she starts to choke for a brief moment.

On recovering enough, she asks, "What did you just say?"

Chuck's eyebrows immediately start to frown in confusion over her question to him. He was only making a light joke.

 _Wow, she really did get out of bed the wrong side this morning! Be careful, Chuck!_

"What? What did I do, what did I say?" He then asks in puzzlement and shock on replaying in his mind what he had just said to cause her outburst and he can't think of any reason for it to provoke a reaction.

"Chuck, what did you just say?" she repeats furthering his confusion.

"I said I better be careful or you might decide to impale me like you have other things previously when waking on the wrong side of bed in the morning?" he says as his nervousness begins to increase ten-fold over his wife's present erratic behaviour with him right now.

"So I've done it before?" she asks and he nods his head affirmatively in complete confusion.

"Yeah, why?" he asks.

She responds immediately to his latest question to her, "It's been on my mind for a few days. I have these strange things on my mind that I can't make any sense out of," she admits and his curiosity suddenly explodes through the roof over these 'strange things' that she has just stated to him.

"May I please enquire as to what those things are?" he enquires as he then moves to take a seat opposite her at their dining table.

She nods her head as he then begins to wait as he studies the facial expressions of his wife which are that of puzzlement as she likely digs out the answer to his question.

"Apple fruit juice, sizzling shrimp, an impaled alarm clock... It probably sounds stupid," she admits causing an instant trademark Bartowski grin to light up his face.

"Heh, Sarah, those are actual living memories with a story behind all of them!" he says passionately as his deep loving smile continues.

He watches as his wife then does a double take.

"Really? I just thought that they were insignificant?" she queries and he immediately vehemently shakes his head.

"No, quite the contrary. If you'll allow me, can I just grab some refreshment briefly, and I'll tell you all about it in a moment?" he asks.

He watches as she then nods her head acceptingly in response to his question before replying, "Sure."

He smiles in response before replying, "Thank you. I'll be right back."

She nods her head once more and he takes that as his leave as he moves to stand up once more and he hurriedly begins to head for their kitchen because the quicker he makes his drink, the quicker he can share more stories with and refresh his wife's memory of their past time spent together. Opening the refrigerator, he removes some orange juice before closing the refrigerator door. On closing it, he moves slightly, as he opens up a cupboard and retrieves a glass out of the cupboard. On retrieving the glass, he places it down on one of the kitchen surfaces before picking up the orange juice carton, opening it and pouring some of its contents into the glass. Normally, he'd return the juice back into the refrigerator but his mind is so occupied right now with the upcoming memories he's about to share with his wife as he then picks up his glass of orange juice as he then proceeds to quickly walk back to their dining table and he moves to sit back down opposite her. On sitting, he raises the glass to take a gulp of the juice until he now begins to feel refreshed enough to begin the conversation with her.

"Ok, which story do you want to hear about first?" he asks as a loving smile forms once more.

He then waits briefly as she starts to contemplate his question.

"The alarm clock, because that's what you started with."

He nods in acceptance. "Ok, well... Where to begin..." he pauses as he begins to think back to his time spent together with his wife five years ago. "It all goes back five years ago. Do you remember at the beach when I told you about the bomb that didn't turn out to be a bomb?"

She nods and he watches as a smile forms on her face for the first time today.

"Yeah. Our first kiss," she then admits causing an instant wide loving grin to return to his face once more.

"Yeah," he says softly. "And also you threatening to shoot me to stop me from getting blown up. I won't let you ever forget about that," he pauses briefly, as the husband and wife gaze warmly at each other. "But moving on, we kiss and then everything I told you about the pretending from you that it didn't happen and when things got awkward once we found out Bryce was still alive and everything else I told you about a few days ago."

She nods before continuing the conversation, "Yeah, I can remember everything you told me about that point in our life."

He nods. "So yeah, you decided to refuse Bryce's offer to leave with him and you stayed with me. Now bear in mind that you only told me about what happened with the clock much later, so I didn't actually see it happen."

He pauses and she nods in confirmation.

"But you woke up the very next morning after deciding to stay with me and you were feeling awful as you'd not slept all night. The decision you took to stay with me and to not leave with him must have been playing on your mind all night and you were disturbed awake by an alarm clock and because of how pissed off you were in that moment, you threw a knife at it and impaled it to shut it up," he declares with a wide grin and he watches as his wife begins to snicker.

He then continues. "Our bosses weren't happy that you turned up late to work that day but myself and Casey were attempting to cover for you,"

"Casey covered for me?" she interrupts his story telling and he nods his head affirmatively, his loving smile still formed, which she returns on hearing his words to her.

He continues. "Sarah, Casey didn't show his feelings easily but he cared and still deeply cares about the both of us. I'd even go as far as to say he loves us, but don't ever tell him I told you that or he'd kill me,"

She interrupts once more, "Chuck, he'd have to get through me first,"

On hearing his wife's protectiveness of himself, if at all possible, his loving grin extends further. Though he's not sure if she is joking with him or if she is serious, but if her facial expressions were anything to go by, then he'd say that she was being deadly serious in what she has just said to him.

"Sarah, I was just playing. Actually, I'm not so sure…" he pauses on actually taking the time to think about what his friend would do to him if he found out that he was going around telling people that he loves them. "So anyway, after the seduction mission on the boat after I lost one hundred thousands dollars we made up and I bought you an alarm clock as a Christmas gift as I had noted the impaled alarm clock in your room but I didn't know why you did it at the time."

He watches as a wide loving grin strong enough to match one of his own forms on her face. "You're funny," she declares lovingly and he continues his loving smile at her.

"Well, I try to be, heh," he states as he then moves to pick up his orange juice and takes another gulp once more.

"You've gotten me better Christmas presents than an alarm clock though, right?" she asks flirtatiously and he immediately starts to snicker whilst nodding his head affirmatively in response to her humour.

"Of course! Who do you think you've dealing with?" he retorts and he watches intently as a mischievous look begins to form on his wife's face.

"A n..."

He quickly interrupts her. "Don't say it. Please," he pauses as he begs as he moves his hands into a praying position at the table. "I'd like that number to stay at one thousand and not have you do that any more to me."

On hearing his declaration, she smiles adoringly at him before replying, "Finish the story then. Or I will."

He laughs briefly at her threat before replying, "Ok! Ok! Hold your horses! Well, I'm kind of glad you just threatened that actually, because the very next part of the story is a big relationship moment for us and I don't need any encouragement to tell you how besotted you were with me. You asked Casey one to one if he just wanted a normal life."

He watches as she frowns briefly in puzzlement. "Why did I ask that?" she asks as he continues to grin adoringly at her.

"Because we had kissed and you were imagining us together as a normal couple," he informs her and they pause for a brief moment as they burn an intimate gaze at each other.

"How did you find out? I can't imagine doing that unless I knew one hundred percent that only Casey would hear what I had to say." she asks.

He nods his head in agreement. "You told me once we were official. Everything that you had to hide from me you pretty much told me it all once we were together and it made me so happy," he admits as he fondly begins to recall those memories that he had, had with his wife.

They continue their smile and their eye contact that they hadn't broken from each other since Chuck had returned with his orange juice.

"I'm glad we got together. After everything we'd been through, to get to have each other. It wouldn't have been fair if we hadn't," she admits and he nods his head as he continues to gaze lovingly at her.

"Sarah, it's not past tense. You still have me. And you always will so long as you want that," he declares.

She smiles at him once more. "I know," she then replies and they pause briefly as Chuck takes in her chosen words to him before she continues further, "So did anything else happen in that moment on that mission?"

A perplexed look forms on Chuck's face as he dips into his memory bank once more before his wide grin returns on recalling further information.

"Yeah! I blew up Casey's Crown Vic," he chuckles causing Sarah to snort with approving laughter.

"No way!" she says in amazement on recovering from her laughter and he nods his head.

"Yes way," he pauses to laugh and she smiles affectionately at him. "By the way, you made him allow me to do it."

"How?" she asks him with a wide smile.

"The bad guy fired off a missile that was heading straight for some kind of yacht which actually had Morgan onboard. I managed to reset the homing device but then the missile changed course and began heading right back to where it launched from which is the boat that we were on. I demanded the GPS coordinates of his vehicle to reprogram the missile and he wouldn't give me them and you said something like: GIVE HIM THEM CASEY! Heh."

He watches as his wife snorts with laughter once more causing his adoring smile to remain shaped.

"Poor Casey," she replies and he nods his head in agreement.

"Yeah..." he then replies and a brief silence ensues between them.

"So what about the fruit juice?" she then asks him and his adoring grin forms once more.

He pauses briefly before responding, as his mind begins to recollect the next memory of their time spent together. "Um, this mission took place a few years later and not too long before our wedding," he pauses to allow his wife to process his information to her and to recollect further. "The CIA were trying to replace our team with a new and improved team. They didn't like our or my results rather and my performance as the intersect so they uploaded it into other agents. It turns out, they weren't the best, and that we were and still are, the A Team."

He watches as her loving smile to him continues. "Where does the juice come into it?" she asks and he chuckles briefly.

"Well basically, there was a nuclear bomb set to go off and the B team couldn't defuse it," he pauses. "So the A team was called in, at Casey's request as it turns out he had been leading this new team behind our back and I ended up defusing the nuclear suitcase bomb with none other than, yep that's right, apple fruit juice."

On Chuck finishing his story, he watches as Sarah bursts into laughter as a look of amazement forms on her face.

"So not only was we stopping bombs with computer porn viruses but we're also defusing nukes with apple fruit juice?" she asks in amazement and he nods affirmatively with complete and total happiness present on his persona.

"Wow, that's not very conventional," she states humorously.

He nods.

"No, but Sarah, that's why we were the best, because our methods were unconventional," he declares as the husband and wife then enter into approving laughter over his words once more.

"What about the sizzling shrimp?" she enquires and he chuckles lovingly once more as he starts to recall another fond memory of his time spent with his wife.

"Our first stakeout," he admits and pauses briefly to dip into his memory bank once more. "It was during our mission when we turned the Chinese agent in exchange for helping her brother who had been taken by triads. Basically, me, you and Morgan had all gone out to eat sizzling shrimp together. Morgan loves it. Anyway, I flash on the Chinese agent and that's when our mission begins. I screw it up in a trademark way but like I said a few days ago, I recover it. But anyway, I regressed, on our stakeout of the club ran by the triads, I order sizzling shrimp and it's delivered to our stakeout van," he pauses as he watches fondly as his wife bursts into laughter.

"Oh Chuck, you doofus!" she states adoringly to him causing him to chuckle.

"It's better than being called a nerd again I suppose," he admits humorously and she grins at him.

"You know, there's more to the sizzling shrimp if you want?" he then asks.

"What is it?" she asks cute and affectionately.

"I was on my final mission a few months after Prague before becoming a full agent. I was on a stakeout together with you and I brought along music, champagne and none other than yes, you guessed it, sizzling shrimp."

"Wow. Nobody throws a stakeout like Chuck Bartowski," she declares warmly and he starts to chuckle approvingly in agreement.

"Oh you bet your life they don't," he states proudly as he finishes before then moving to take another much needed gulp of his orange juice.

"Are there any stories about Orange Juice?" she jokes causing him to almost spit out the juice as he begins to laugh.

On recovering, he starts to shake his head as he replies, "Not that I can recall."

The husband and wife then enter into a short moment of silence, though they continue their gaze at each other from where they are seated opposite each other.

"Wow, Chuck, I really am speechless. I thought those things were just insignificant items," she admits.

"Sarah, in our life, nothing is insignificant. Anything as silly as it may seem, as soon as you think about it please tell me, ok?" he asks and she nods her head.

"Ok," she agrees.

"Now all of this conversation has made me hungry. Would you like to eat breakfast together?" he asks with a loving smile. His mouth is actually hurting from smiling so much. After the brief abruptness of his wife earlier, the rest of however long they have been speaking to each other has been perfect.

He watches as a similar loving smile forms on his wife's face before she replies, "Sure."

Chuck smiles at her a final time, before the husband and wife then stand up as they head to their kitchen to decide what to make and eat together…

* * *

 **A short while later**

Chuck and Sarah have now finished eating breakfast together and are now talking once more over yet another morning beverage.

"Sarah, if you don't want me to come with you to tonight's appointment I understand even though I so desperately want to be there with you for support. To be honest with you, I'm just so happy you accepted my offer of help yesterday and anything else is really is just a bonus," he declares sincerely.

A wide smile forms on Sarah's face as she starts to fondly recall her husband's kindness the previous night.

 _He has every right to be in that room r_ _ight next to me._

"Chuck, I'd like you to come," she declares lovingly to him.

She then watches as a wide smile forms on her husband's face once more causing her to feel instant satisfaction and happiness that she has elated her husband by allowing him to come with her.

"Really?" he asks softly.

She nods her head.

"Yeah," she admits.

"Sarah, thank you," he declares affectionately to her.

"You're welcome," she responds as they continue to share their loving smiles with each other.

"I should probably leave for work now, though. It's really quite late in the morning and I'm sure you have things to do yourself today," he declares.

She nods her head.

"Yeah I do. I'll see you tonight then," she declares affectionately.

"Yeah. I'll be back home about 3:30pm. That will give us ample time before the appointment," he pauses and she nods her head.

"I really enjoyed this morning, Sarah." he then says to her.

A smile forms on her face once more on hearing his declaration.

"Me too," she admits as they walk together towards the exit to their apartment.

On arriving at the door, Chuck turns and they move to embrace together for a long moment before they begin to part from each other and they begin to smile at each other for a final time as they start to say their goodbyes.

"Bye," he says affectionately.

"Bye," she replies with her loving smile still in place.

She then watches as he opens the door to their home and he begins to depart and she moves forward slightly to take up the position that he had formerly been in and she watches as he turns back to look at her and they gaze at each other a final time, before he turns once more and he disappears from view…

* * *

 **A short while later**

Chuck has just arrived at work in the best mood he has been in for a long time. The morning he has spent together with his wife has him feeling on cloud nine. Though he's not sure what caused her initial abruptness but he's sure there is an underlying cause to it but he was too happy to dig into what that actually was right now.

On arriving in the vicinity of his best friend Morgan who is also present at work, he stops dead as he greets his friend warmly who is looking at him and they smile fondly at each other. "Hey, Morgan,"

"Hi, Chuck," his best friend replies in the same warm tone.

"I'm sorry I didn't call you last night man like I promised. I was busy with Sarah, I'm sorry," he admits.

He watches as Morgan nods his head.

"Chuck, it's fine. Until Sarah either gets her memory back, or falls in love with you again, I would expect nothing less than to be second on your priority list. Heh," he replies sincerely causing Chuck to smile fondly at his best friend once more.

"Thank you, Morgan. So then, let's get started with our plans," Chuck states and Morgan nods his head as the two friends get started on their day…

 **N** **inety minutes** **later**

Chuck and Morgan have been planning on how to rebuild the presently defunct Carmichael Industries for the past hour and a half and they are locked in conversation together when they are abruptly interrupted as a message flashes on screen.

 _It reads: Hey Chuckles. I'll be in contact soon. Carina._

On reading the message, a wide smile forms on Chuck's face.

"Yes, Chuck! We're back in business baby!" Morgan declares proudly causing Chuck to chuckle approvingly in response.

He then replies, "I still think we need more than three as a team but we'll decide that in the coming days."

He watches as his best friend nods his head in agreement before replying, "High-five it right there, buddy," he says as he raises his hand and Chuck moves to high-five together with his best friend...

 **A short while later**

"I'm gonna head and get some dinner now and probably pop in on Alex for a short while, Chuck," Morgan declares and Chuck nods his head.

Chuck then replies, "Ok, buddy."

"Do you want anything, Chuck?" Morgan asks and Chuck shakes his head no.

"I'm fine, buddy. I'm super busy with these plans on the kind of cyber-terrorism work we can undertake if or when we shift Carmichael Industries into that line of work," Chuck replies informatively.

Morgan nods his head. "Ok, man. I'll see you soon, Chuck," Morgan says.

Chuck nods his head as Morgan then departs leaving Chuck alone to continue to map out his plans for his company…

* * *

 **A short while later**

Sarah has just returned from a late morning jog, though it is now afternoon, as it had just turned 12pm. She has just arrived at the apartment complex containing her home that she is accustoming herself to once more and she is at the fountain when she's alerted to the door of Chuck's friend Morgan opening. She pauses and she watches as the short man says goodbye to his girlfriend.

 _Hmm. I need to have a few words with him. I'm still a little sore with him over this iou note and his former attempts to block my intimacy with Chuck that Chuck has told me about..._

She pauses stationary in wait until the door shuts and she notes as Morgan notices her presence and she watches as he attempts to hurriedly speed off but she is too quick for him and she dashes after him and catches up with him before grabbing him and launching him into a wall.

On expertly pinning him in place she says, "We need to have words, Morgan," and she watches as he audibly shrieks in fear and he averts his glance away from her.

"Sarah, I'll do anything to make it up to you! Stealing it was wrong but I kinda needed it, heh," he says in a way that winds Sarah up and she grabs and scrunches his face causing him to shriek once more.

"And my attempts to elope!" she shouts into his scrunched up face in her hand.

"But Sar," he tries to protest her words but she cuts him off.

"Ok, Morgan, well this is how you're gonna make it up to me for what you did. You're going to tell me everything about what Chuck is saying about our situation right now. Plus moving forward, I need you to become an inside man for me. Can you do that for me, Morgan?" she asks.

She watches as he then nods his head, which is still being squished by Sarah.

"I can do that. But Sarah, can you please release my head?!" he begs and Sarah complies on hearing that he has agreed to help her, though she's not too impressed with how easily he just sold out his so called best friend.

"You're not supposed to make it easy, Morgan. You sold him out easily," she then says with distaste and watches as he immediately begins to chuckle.

"Hell yeah I did! Sarah, if it helps Chuck to get his wife back, then I will do ANYTHING and that includes selling my best friend out, heh," he states bluntly and on hearing Chuck's friend's bluntness, Sarah does an instant double take. That wasn't the response that she was expecting, that's for sure...

"So speak up then," she then states.

She watches as he nods his head.

"What do you want to know?" he asks.

She responds, "Chuck is tripping on eggshells around me right now. Do you know why?"

She watches as he nods his head once more before he then replies immediately.

"Yeah. He's afraid of you leaving him."

Sarah nods her head. "I assumed as much. It's making me feel very uncomfortable," she admits.

"Sarah, I've already told you this before Quinn captured you. You're a pretty big catch. It's understandable why Chuck is nervous of you leaving him. Quinn is a douche for what he did to you but you have forgot all memory of Chuck thanks to him and he's afraid of the future."

Sarah immediately starts to respond before having chance to think about what she is saying.

"Morgan, I get that, I do. But how can I get to know him again once more if he won't let me in?" she asks but on realizing what she just did, which is confessing her inner thoughts to a stranger, she enters into a state of shock over how easy that just was.

 _Did I really just confess to Morgan how I feel? I haven't even told Chuck that yet..._

She doesn't have any time to hold an inquisition into her slip of the tongue however, as Morgan has already started to respond, causing her to drop her inner thoughts and to listen to him once more.

"You need to go out on a date with him. It's the only way you can get to see the real Chuck. The Chuck that you fell in love with," he states factually.

Sarah takes a moment to process Morgan's words.

 _He's right. I was thinking it myself just yesterday… But how can I get him to feel comfortable enough to ask me?_

"But how can I get him to ask me when he's so uncomfortable to even kiss me?" she pauses, as she realizes that once more she has opened herself up to Morgan Grimes of all people.

"Leave it all to Uncle Morgan and you two will be going at it like rabbits again in no time," he states as he begins to chuckle which causes an immediate feeling of distaste for Sarah.

"That's gross," she replies disgustedly on a stranger openly talking about sex with her.

"Not as gross as the grape soda I just had. Heh, that was disgusting. It was so not at the right temperature," he then replies causing an immediate look of confusion on Sarah's face.

 _My work here is done._

"Goodbye, Morgan," she declares as she begins to move out from Chuck's friend's proximity.

Though she then pauses and turns to face him as he starts to talk to her once more, "Well, I think that was a very productive chat, Sarah. And be assured, Uncle Morgan is on the case. You can thank me later. Heh."

Sarah nods her head at the short man, before turning away and continuing to walk until she enters her home once more…

* * *

 **A short while later**

Chuck is still focusing on the task in hand which is planning out the future for Carmichael Industries when he notes Morgan returning to the building. He pauses from his plans to engage in conversation with his friend instead.

"Good lunch?" he asks and he watches as his friend nods his head.

"Great lunch! The grape soda was ruined though, Chuck," his friend replies in despair.

Chuck laughs before responding, "That's not good, buddy."

"Damn right it's not, Chuck. But more importantly, I had a nice chat with Sarah on the way back here," he states and a strong look of intrigue forms on Chuck's face on hearing his friend's latest words. He is now VERY interested in engaging in conversation with his best friend.

"Oh?" he asks.

"Yeah. I probably shouldn't tell you but who am I kidding, of course I am going to tell you! Chuck, Sarah is feeling very uncomfortable around you, man."

Chuck processes his friend's information before responding, "What did she say?

"She told me that she feels like you're tripping on eggshells around her and it's making her uncomfortable as she doesn't know how to deal with it. Sarah is a big catch, Chuck. For want of a better analogy, you need to throw her a bone! And a very big one! You can't get her to love you again if you don't open yourself up to her and allow her back inside," he states.

Chuck sighs deeply as he processes his friend's words to him.

"Morgan, I want Sarah Bartowski, my wife. I don't want Sarah Walker, my girlfriend. I can't pretend to be her boyfriend again when I will only now consider myself her husband for the rest of my life." he then admits with a sad smile.

He watches as Morgan nods his head.

"I get that, Chuck. I do. And it must be hard for you man. But a girlfriend is better than nothing at all," he pauses and Chuck takes a big gulp on hearing his friend's words. "If you don't give her something, Chuck, then she's gone and you will be left with nothing. You need to ask her out on a date and allow her to get to know you again, Chuck. She can't become your wife again until she learns how to love you again. It's unfair of you to expect her to resume wife duties immediately when she can't even remember marrying you. Throw her a bone, Chuck."

Chuck pauses in deep thought on hearing his friend's stark revelations.

"You trust me, right?" Morgan then asks and Chuck immediately begins to nod.

"Of course, Morgan, you know I do" he declares.

"Then take her out on a date. Go to the most lavishly expensive place that money can buy and then woo and sweep that woman off her feet exactly how you did all those years ago and blow her mind…"

 **An hour later**

Chuck is now preparing to depart from work. It had been a short day, but Sarah's upcoming appointment with the best neurologist in the country was the most important thing today. If being honest with himself, the anticipation has been on the forefront of his mind the entire day which has resulted in him not being very productive in his plans.

"Remember, Chuck. Throw her a bone," Morgan states to his friend.

"Morgan, I'll try. I don't know how to deal with the situation we are in to be honest with you," he replies.

"You can do it, Chuck. Just trust me. In one or two weeks from now, you will be saying to me: Morgan, you are my saviour. Heh," he finishes as he starts to laugh which causes Chuck to do the same.

"I won't be able to see you tonight. I don't know how long we will be at the hospital and we could have other plans," he states.

"It's ok, Chuck. Good luck tonight," Morgan replies.

"Thank you buddy," Chuck replies as they move to embrace...

* * *

 **Chuck and Sarah's apartment**

For most of today, Sarah's stomach has been feeling unsettled. She knows that it stems from the uncertainty of tonight's appointment with the doctor. Not knowing what to expect when she is there. She wants to get better, obviously. But she is not going to go into the appointment tonight and expect the doctor to wave a magic wand. Sarah has never believed in any of that nonsense. She's a firm believer that if you want something in life, you do it yourself. Even if Sarah doesn't recover her memories of Chuck, she doesn't need them anyway. She doesn't need her past memories to be with him. Because the reality _is_ that they are already creating new memories together.

Sarah is lounging on the sofa wearing jeans and a blouse when she hears activity outside their home. She snaps her gaze at the door and she watches as Chuck enters. On Chuck entering, Sarah moves to stand up to greet him as a smile forms as she gazes at him, and she watches as he smiles right back at her.

"Hi. I told you I'd be early," he declares as they continue their loving smiles.

"I didn't doubt it," she replies affectionately.

She watches as a mischievous look forms. "Not even a little?" he asks playfully.

"Nope," she replies with a wide smile.

"Heh," he pauses. "Sarah, I'm feeling so nervous. My stomach feels so uneasy." he admits.

Hearing his admission causes her to laugh, as she is feeling the exact same as him.

"That's how I'm feeling too, Chuck," she admits.

"Do I have time to shower and change into something else?" he asks.

She nods her head. "You have plenty of time, Chuck. The hospital isn't far, right?" she inquires.

She watches him shake his head. "About ten miles. It's near Beverly Hills."

She nods. "So you have plenty of time," she says soothingly.

He grins. "Ok, great!"

 **A short while later**

Sarah and Chuck are now both ready and they are now preparing to depart their home to head to Los Angeles Neurology Center where Sarah will be assessed by a neurologist which is a doctor specialising in the nervous system. It is important to bear in mind that Sarah can't ever disclose what has caused her amnesia, because it's confidential government secrets and highly classified and it would land her or Chuck in jail faster than you can say _Jack Robinson_. But tonight should provide clarity for the young couple and at the very least give them a map to plan out the road ahead for them both.

Sarah is trying her best to calm her nerves, but in vain and she senses that her husband is feeling the same as her right now. She decides to engage in conversation with him to see if it will help to ease them both.

"Chuck, I need you to do me a favour," she asks.

"Anything," he replies immediately.

"Please don't go into the appointment expecting them to wave a magic wand. They may not be able to fix me and don't kid yourself with false hope, ok?" she asks softly.

He nods his head. "Ok," he agrees.

But just like her attempts to get him to be himself around her yesterday, she notes once more that he doesn't seem to register her words. The poor guy is probably thinking that after tonight, Sarah will have all of her memories back and thus they'll return immediately to how they were before Quinn had captured her.

"Are you ready then?" he asks and she nods as they start to depart but she pauses to take his arm and he turns to look at her once more.

"One more thing, Chuck, she pauses. "don't freak out..."

 **A short while later**

Chuck and Sarah have just arrived at the neurology hospital that Sarah will be assessed in tonight. Sarah is paused stationary inside the main reception and she is gazing at the back of Chuck as Chuck is presently engaging in conversation with the receptionist at the desk as he confirms all of the details for the appointment he had made for Sarah the previous night.

She continues to wait idly for a minute or two until she watches as Chuck turns away from the desk and begins to walk over to her once more.

"All confirmed and booked in," he informs her with a smile and she returns the gesture.

"Ok," she replies nervously and he seems to sense her nerves, as she can his, as he moves to take her hand with his own.

"I'm nervous too, Sarah. It will be ok," he says reassuringly.

She smiles warmly at him. _Be strong for me Chuck, I will need your positivity to feed from_ _tonight._

"Let's take a seat," he then says and she nods as they walk hand in hand towards the waiting area before moving to take a seat next to each other.

The couple then sit in silence for a few minutes as they both begin to take in their present surroundings and to attempt to keep their anticipation under control. The hospital is quite busy with activity and there are numerous people sitting waiting along with Chuck and Sarah and there is much more activity with people moving around all over the area and the receptionists engaging in face to face and phone dialogue.

Sarah starts to scan her glance around other people waiting for appointments in an attempt to distract herself from her nervousness right now as she notes a young woman sitting on her own next to her. There are also a middle aged couple, an elderly couple and a little girl sitting on her own with a doll in her hand and a book next to her. She doesn't look in the best of places emotionally right now.

Sarah's distraction works, as her feelings of nervousness leave her and are instead replaced with warmth for the girl she presently looking at. She begins to wonder if it is the girl herself who is here to be seen, or her parents.

 _Where are her parents?_

Sarah then shifts her glance to her husband momentarily, and she can see him likewise intently watching the young girl on her own and looking very sad. Sarah then rotates her glance around the waiting area once more and it appears that most people are paying attention to the young girl who looks ridden with grief.

And what happens next, takes Sarah by complete surprise as she snaps her attention back onto her husband who had started speaking to her.

"Can you please excuse me? I would like to see how she is and to see what's wrong and if there is anything I can do to make her feel better," he says softly.

Sarah gulps hard. She doesn't trust herself to reply to him in fear of displaying strong emotion towards him because of his heartfelt words to her so she nods her head and smiles warmly at him.

"Thank you," he breathes softly and they gaze at each other until he turns his back on her and begins to walk the short distance to the young girl facing opposite. Sarah continues to watch and study the young girl now accompanied by her husband more intensely than she ever has studied something before.

"Hi," she hears Chuck say to the young girl no older than five in a warm, soothing voice.

"Hi," she hears the girl respond in sadness which breaks Sarah's heart and melts her strongest of walls.

"I'm, Chuck," she then hears her husband say in his continued soothing tone.

"I'm, Abigail," she hears the young girl reply, as a wide smile forms on Sarah's face in watching before her own eyes the loving and deeply heartwarming moment between Chuck and the young girl.

"That is a lovely name. And why are you here today, Abigail?" she hears Chuck reply as she continues to zone out and watch and listen intently to the dialogue between the girl and Chuck.

"My daddy is sick," she hears the girl reply and Sarah's breath catches as she begins to gasp in sorrow and shock.

"Oh dear, I am so sorry to hear that," she hears Chuck reply compassionately.

"I want to be able to help him get better," the young girl replies as Sarah feels her eyes now begin to gloss.

"You are helping him by thinking of him now. I'm sure he can feel your loving thoughts," she hears Chuck reassuringly say.

"Thank you," the young girl then replies.

Sarah then watches as Chuck's glance shifts onto the doll that the girl is holding right now.

"What's that you have there?" she hears him ask.

She watches as a bright smile then forms on the young girl's face before she hears her reply, "My favorite doll."

"Ooh, can I look at it?" she then hears Chuck say and she watches as the young girl nods her head as a lone tear now starts to escape from Sarah's eye over the actions of her husband and she watches as the young girl then begins to hand the doll into Chuck's hands.

"Thank you. I can see why it's your favorite. And who purchased you this beautiful doll, Abigail?" she hears Chuck ask.

"Daddy," the young girl replies fondly.

"And what's that you have there?" she then hears Chuck say as he points to the book.

"My favorite book. But I don't feel like reading it," the young girl admits.

"Can I read it to you?" she hears Chuck say and she watches as the young girl nods her head and hands the book to Chuck who then moves to sit down on the floor of the waiting room as he crosses his legs and places the book onto his leg and Sarah watches as he begins to study it. Sarah is now feeling like she is just a few milliseconds away from bursting into tears and if she wasn't trained in hiding her emotions, that's exactly what she would be doing right now.

"Oh, Goodnight Moon, huh?" she then hears Chuck ask.

"It's my favorite," the young girl says as Sarah notes the young girl in a happier mood than before Chuck had approached her.

"I like it too. But don't tell anybody," she hears him reply as a huge smile forms on Sarah's face before her attention is disturbed and she shifts her glance onto the lady sitting on her own next to her.

"Is that your?"

"Husband," Sarah interrupts and finishes before the lady can come to her conclusion.

Sarah continues her gaze at the young woman next to her and they share a smile.

"You must be so proud of him,"

 _More than I can even begin to tell you._

"I am," Sarah states proudly with more pride felt towards somebody than she can ever remember feeling, the raw emotion still present on her face as she shifts her gaze back to watch Chuck as he begins to read the story while shifting her glance to the woman next to her from time to time.

"He's so good with children," the young woman declares admiringly.

"He is," Sarah admits as she continues to shift her glance between Chuck and the young girl and the young woman opposite her.

"You found a good one. I wish I could meet somebody like that," the young woman declares.

 _Well you can't have him. He's all mine._

"I did," Sarah replies proudly with the sparkle still in her eye…

* * *

A few minutes have passed and the young girl's father has just returned from his appointment and Chuck had now stood up from where he had been sitting on the father returning to his child.

"Thank you for looking after her for me. She's too young to understand and I didn't want to have her in the room in fear of upsetting her. I asked the receptionist staff if they could keep an eye on her and they told me that you'd been looking out for her," she hears the father say to Chuck.

"I get it. It's no problem at all. We had a lot of fun, didn't we?" she hears Chuck ask as he shifts his glance between the young girl and her father.

"Yes, thank you," the young girl replies with a beaming smile.

"You're welcome. I hope things improve for your family," she hears Chuck say as he continues to shift his glance between daughter and father.

"Thank you. And for you too," the father replies.

"Thanks," Chuck replies and Sarah watches as the men shake hands before Chuck turns to the young girl a final time.

"Goodbye, Abigail," she hears him say.

"Bye, Chuck," the young girl replies.

She watches as he smiles at them a final time from the sideways position that he is presently in before he then turns to face her again and by god Sarah gives him an adoring smile of her own. She continues her stare at him as he then returns to her.

"Is everything ok?" he asks softly on seeing the raw emotion present on her face.

"Everything is perfect," she replies gleefully, as she moves a hand up to rub her eye.

 _You're perfect… I couldn't have wished for anybody better to marry. You have the kindest of hearts. If I wasn't so scared of displaying my emotions and sharing my feelings with others, then I would be telling you this right now..._

She watches as grins at her, before he moves to a seat next to her once more and she immediately takes his hand to connect it with her own.

A brief moment of silence passes, and she then looks at him as Chuck starts to talk once more.

"I'm sorry I was so long," he states sincerely.

"Chuck, don't you dare apologize for what you just did," she warns him with a vibrant smile as she affectionately squeezes his hand tighter that is holding onto her own and she gazes lovingly into his alluring, chocolatey eyes...

 **A few minutes later**

Because they had arrived early, it has only just turned 5:30 and right on cue, Sarah's loving gaze on Chuck is interrupted as a middle aged man in scrubs arrives in her immediate vicinity. She gazes up at him from where she is seated and notes his badge that states Dr Jake Williams, MD. Her nervousness immediately begins to build once more on being moments away from her appointment.

"It's Sarah, I take it?" he asks and she nods as she smiles warmly at him.

"And Chuck?" he then asks as his glance shifts to Chuck who moves to stand up, followed quickly by Sarah.

"I am," Chuck replies.

"It's good to meet you," the doctor replies as he moves to shake Chuck's hand, followed by Sarah's.

"I'm Dr Williams but please, call me Jake. I'm the leading neurologist at this facility and I will be your consultant today," he informs them and Sarah and Chuck nod their heads.

"Ok then, if you'd like to follow me?" the doctor replies as he extends out his arms in the direction that he wishes them to follow.

Chuck and Sarah then begin to follow the doctor a short distance, they glance at each other briefly, in nervousness. Arriving finally outside of a door, the doctor speaks once more

"Here we are then," he states as he begins to usher Chuck and Sarah inside the consultation room.

The three adults then move to take a seat, with Chuck and Sarah next to each other and the doctor a short distance away.

Chuck immediately reaches out for Sarah's hand, and she quickly returns the gesture as they look nervously at each other once more and try to control their minds as their grip on each others hands becomes tighter.

Thankfully for the young couple, the doctor quickly begins to speak to them.

"So then, how may I help you today, Mrs?" the doctor pauses to allow Chuck or Sarah to respond to his question. He's aware that the young couple infront of him is married, but that she can not remember her husband right now.

Sarah watches as Chuck rotates his gaze between herself and the doctor, before he then painfully starts to speak, "Walk..."

But he is immediately interrupted as he shifts his gaze back at Sarah.

"Bartowski," she says but pauses, as she watches him burn a gaze right at her "Sarah Bartowski."

On finishing, she looks at him once more and she watches as an almighty grin begins to form and she returns a weaker version of her own right back at him.

"So, how can I help you today then, Mrs Bartowski?" the doctor replies warmly.

"Please, call me Sarah," she pauses and the doctor graciously nods his head at her. "I've had an accident at work. I can't disclose those confidential details to you due to the nature of my job," she pauses once more and he nods his head in acceptance "but I have lost all memory of the past five years of my life."

"I see. And can you remember anything at all from the past five years?" the doctor enquires.

"Small things. I have talked at length with my..." she pauses briefly to build up the courage to say what she wanted to say, "husband about these memories and we have ascertained that I seem to remember things, if there is a trigger to remember them?"

"I see. And may I enquire as to if you are feeling any strange emotions towards your husband? I can understand if you are uncomfortable to share that with me or not, but please know that it is very important if I am to make an accurate diagnosis..."

Sarah watches as Chuck shifts his gaze from the doctor back to her instead.

"Yes I am. And I don't know why," she admits as her gaze shifts between Chuck and the doctor.

"Fortunately, Sarah, I can enlighten you with an explanation of that. Now obviously, I'll need to perform numerous tests on you today before I can definitively give you a diagnosis. But from what you have told me in that you are feeling emotions towards your husband. I can apprise you that memories and feelings and emotions are stored in two different locations," he pauses to allow his information to be digested by the couple before continuing, "Sometimes it takes a specific trigger point to bring back those emotions and your feelings towards somebody. Have yourself and your husband had any kind of trigger where you have reconnected emotionally together in recent days since this 'accident' that could have caused your emotions to come flooding back?"

Sarah pauses as she looks at Chuck and they both nod their head in unison before they both begin to mouth "the beach."

Their reply was muted but the doctor could just about make out what they both said together.

"I see, and what happened there at that beach if I may ask?"

Sarah pauses briefly in reflection. "Well, I had told Chuck that I needed to be on my own to find myself for a while... And I was just driving around until I kind of led myself to a spot that felt so familiar to my situation. We didn't meet each other for the first time at that beach, but it was the place where the first powerful memory of our relationship took place. Chuck came looking for me, and we reconnected emotionally with each other again and we spent a long time out there together."

Sarah watches as the doctor then nods his head. "That was the trigger point. And how intense are these emotions that you are feeling towards him?"

"Very," she admits and she watches as a wide grin forms on Chuck's face once more.

"Ok. Please bear with me while I gather some information to provide you both with. It will help to explain what I'm about to tell you."

Chuck and Sarah both nod their heads in acceptance as the doctor begins to collect some paperwork inside the consultation room before returning to his seat and handing out copies to them both.

The information on the paper, was a diagram of that of a human brain.

The doctor begins speaking once more. "So, our memories and emotions are stored inside completely different parts of our brain. The context of a memory, including information such as where the location of an event took place, is stored in cells of the hippocampus. While our emotions and feelings that we experience are found in the amygdala, as you can see in the diagram."

Chuck and Sarah begin to digest the doctor's information provided, while taking a moment to study the paperwork in their hands.

"Essentially, the emotions that you are experiencing for your husband right now are undoubtedly because of past times that you have spent together with your husband. Only that you don't know why you are feeling like this about him because you can not remember the memories having taken place. So we are going to need to perform some tests so we can ascertain what has happened for you to damage your hippocampus, but your amygdala may possibly be completely intact."

"Ok," Sarah agrees as she looks to Chuck for comfort and he smiles warmly at her and he reassuringly takes her hand once more.

"I will need to perform a scan of your brain so that I can see its structure and look for any kind of brain damage. After the scan, we'll return you to the waiting area and then once I've studied the results, I'll return to collect you and we can discuss them in detail. If that's ok?" the doctor asks.

Chuck and Sarah both nod their heads in acceptance...

* * *

 **Sometime later**

Sarah and Chuck have just returned into the consultation room after Sarah's brain scan had taken place.

"I will give you both the good news straight away. Your brain appears to be completely healthy and I can't see any form of brain damage from the results of your scan."

On hearing the doctor's information, Sarah turns to look at Chuck and they smile lovingly at each other and a huge relief overcomes both husband and wife.

The doctor continues, "However, because there's no damage, I can't possibly see any cause for your injury. Now obviously, I'm not expecting you to reveal classified secrets to me. I'd be out of a job tomorrow if I did, but can I ask what line of work you have been involved in? Without that, I really would just be doing guesswork in attempting to give you an explanation or diagnosis."

"Government work concerning neurology," Chuck replies and Sarah glances at him for a brief moment before nodding her head in agreement.

"I see. Well because there is no sign of damage, I think there is a high chance that your memories are only suppressed and not permanently damaged. It's possible that you may well regain a large amount of them, in time."

"Will she make a full recovery?" Chuck asks and Sarah glances at him once more, before shifting her gaze back to the doctor to hear his response.

"Impossible to say," the doctor pauses to allow what he said to sink in before continuing, "It is very unlikely that every single memory that your wife has experienced in those five missing years will return. But I can quite confidently say that a large portion of them should. If there was any kind of damage to your wife's nervous system, I would be very worried and we would be along the lines of only ten or twenty percent of your wife's memory being restored at a best case. But because I can't find any damage, we're looking more along the lines of sixty or seventy percent. But please accept that this is just my estimation."

Chuck and Sarah nod their heads in acceptance.

"Will this be a short term or a long term issue for me?" Sarah then asks.

The doctor takes a moment in contemplation before responding, "I wish I could answer that conclusively but I'm afraid that I cannot. Obviously, we all hope for the best case scenario which is for you to recover a substantial portion of your memory in just a few months, but there is also a very real possibility that it could turn into years," he pauses to allow his information to register before continuing, "It is going to take a lot of time and a lot of trust in each other. However, I can see the love between the two of you. And I am sure that you will get through it together in time."

"We will," Sarah responds instantly with conviction she didn't even know she possessed as her gaze shifts between the doctor and Chuck and she smiles affectionately at the latter. She then watches as a wide loving smile begins to form on his face, and it's a smile that she is so quickly falling in love with again once more. She also watches as the doctor smiles warmly at the both of them.

"Might I also suggest that you attend a support group for amnesia sufferers. It might be a help to you both if you can see that you are very much not alone and it will offer you the ability to see how others behave and cope with the challenges that you will undoubtedly face in the coming months ahead," the doctor suggests warmly.

"I'm not sure," Sarah replies apprehensively at the prospect of attending a group that will undoubtedly be full of emotions and warmth.

"You don't have to. I'm just offering it to you as an option that may possibly help you. There are groups that run all of the time and I would like to provide you with the contact details. You don't have to follow through with it but at least you will have the information. You may not want to right now but you might decide in a week's time that it's something you might want to do and then you will readily have the information available."

"Thank you," Chuck responds as the doctor then moves to hand over the aforementioned information of the amnesia support group to Sarah, which she accepts.

"Well it was lovely to meet you both. And I wish that I could help you more than I have,"

"You've been great," Sarah interrupts him and she glances at Chuck who strongly nods his head in agreement with her.

"Yes you have. Thank you so much," Chuck says sincerely.

"It's no problem at all. This is what I am here for. If your symptoms for any reason worsen or you start to experience headaches or anything abnormal and you're concerned about anything at all then please do not hesitate to contact my assistant and we can either have a consultation over the telephone or you can arrange a further face-to-face consultation with me."

"Thank you," Sarah and Chuck both reply as they start to stand up together with the doctor.

They then begin to depart towards the exit and the doctor begins to show them out. On arriving outside, they begin to say their farewells.

"Good luck to you both and I hope that you enjoy your evening together if that is what you are doing," the doctor says softly and a smile forms on the young couple's face.

"Thank you, we will," they reply in unison as they then begin to depart away from the doctor. They continue walking for a short moment until they near the exit of the hospital when Chuck begins to pause and Sarah stops along with him.

"Sarah, you didn't have to do that earlier," he says on them stopping together.

Sarah takes a moment in pause as she attempts to understand his question in vain.

"To do what?" she asks him with a warm smile.

"You know," he pauses. "declare yourself as Sarah Bartowski."

She responds instantly. "Chuck, I did. I'm never going to get better until I can do something as simple as face up to the fact that that's my name. It's Sarah Lisa Bartowski." she repeats once more and she pauses briefly, primarily to see his reaction to her declaration and by god, it's better than she could have hoped as an affectionate grin forms and she can't help but smile back.

"Chuck, if I live in denial over what my name is, I'll never get over this and Chuck, I want to get over it," she stresses as she takes his hand together with her own.

She then watches as his loving grin continues. "Sarah, I want you to get over it too."

"You had better," she jokes causing him to chuckle which causes her to do the same.

"Or else what?" He replies playfully

"Or else I'll steal your chicken pepperoni recipe," she quips back.

"Ouch!" He pauses to laugh, "speaking of, do you want to go and grab some dinner together? We've not eaten," he asks.

"I'd like that, Chuck," she replies and her smile continues and they gaze at each other for a long moment more before departing the hospital together...

* * *

 **An hour later**

It is late evening and Chuck and Sarah have just arrived back outside their shared apartment in Echo Park after grabbing dinner together. It is quite late so they both opted for something simple and they ordered cheeseburgers together, with Sarah sweetly requesting extra pickles on her portion.

Sarah enters into their apartment first and Chuck enters in after her and now that they are in the privacy of their own home with just the two of them, on hearing the door close behind her, Sarah turns to face Chuck who is carrying their dinner in a bag in his hand, and she moves in motion as she wraps her arms around his neck and stands up on her tiptoes slightly to connect her lips together with his own.

On separating for much needed air a long moment later, she smiles at him and he returns it in a stunned gaze.

"What was that for?" He asks cheekily and she loosens one of her arms around his neck as she swats his chest.

"For coming with me and for helping the girl at the hospital," she replies as her loving smile continues.

She watches him as a loving grin forms before he replies, "Sarah, I didn't do it for praise. I did it because I felt really heartbroken for her and I just wanted to make her feel better."

Hearing his declaration causes a sparkle to form in her eye.

 _I have never met a man as amazing as Chuck Bartowski before and probably never will..._

"I know you didn't. And that's why I kissed you," she declares as they smile adoringly at each other.

"Can you let me go now?" he jokes and she smirks and nods her head as she releases him from where she had pinned him against the door and they head to prepare to eat together…

* * *

Chuck and Sarah are now eating cheeseburgers and fries together at their dining table.

Chuck pauses from eating as Sarah starts to talk to him.

"Chuck, talking is not easy for me," she pauses. "At least for the Sarah that I presently am. But I have a lot on my mind right now. Can we talk, about our situation?"

 _Throw her a bone, Chuck._

"Yeah," he agrees and pauses as they gaze lovingly at each other. "What do you want to talk about?"

"Oh gee, making me go first?" she retorts playfully causing him to chuckle.

"Someone has to," he fires back.

"Touché. Fair enough, I brought it up, so I should be the first to start," she pauses. "Chuck, I like you. I like you a lot. And I want this relationship to get back to how it was one day. But I can't be your wife right now, Chuck."

"Sar..." he attempts to interrupt but is stopped by Sarah talking once more.

"Chuck, please. This _really_ isn't easy for me. Please allow me to finish?"

He nods in acceptance and remains silent.

"Thank you. Chuck, I know that you don't like it, but I can only be your girlfriend right now. We aren't even sleeping together so we certainly aren't husband and wife right now... And I don't know about you, but I slept horribly last night."

"I did too," he admits.

"So talk to me, Chuck? Where do we stand? Because I came back to see if we can repair what Quinn did to us but you aren't even treating me intimately as a girlfriend, nevermind a wife."

 _Throw her a bone, Chuck._

He nods his head. "Sarah, you're right," he pauses, as they stare deeply at each other. "I guess I'm scared to open myself up in fear of remembering you differently than how you were before Quinn took you. I know I'm not being fair to you in doing this. And I'm sorry," he admits with a sympathetic smile.

"So where do we go from here, Chuck? To get back to how we were before Quinn captured me?" she asks, as she continues to stare intimately into his eyes.

 _Throw her a bone, Chuck._

"Sarah, I would be a liar if I said I knew the answer to that. But you are right, I do need to do more." He pauses to take her hand. "I can't lose you and I accept that if I don't open myself up intimately to you once more then there's the very real chance that, that exact thing will happen. But god, we're so messed up right now, Sarah, and I don't know what to do to come through this," he admits as he enters into a brief depression.

He then watches as she smiles sympathetically at him and nods her head in agreement with his words, before she moves her free right hand to connect on top of his own one that is presently holding her left hand.

"We are, Chuck. But we can come through it, together, if it's what you want?" she asks.

A wide, loving grin forms on his face once more on hearing his wife's question to him. "Sarah, you're right. And I want that more than anything, believe me," he pauses, as he now moves his own free hand to connect onto Sarah's right hand as he then moves to lean over the table from where he is seated to get closer to her, which she does the same. "So how about this, would you like to go on a date together? It would actually be our fourth? I think first date, heh. Hopefully no NSA hit teams crashing the party. I'm rambling, aren't I?"

"Chuck, it's perfect. Thank you," she declares which causes the biggest smiles of the night from both husband and wife.

"Well in that case, consider yourself blown away again, heh, for the fourth time!" he declares and he watches intently as his wife begins to laugh approvingly, before reverting to her loving smile at him once more...

 **End of Chapter**

* * *

Thoughts? Leave a review and let me know :)

Just the one missing scene this chapter. This was purely a tactical decision as I determined with how long the appointment lasted plus then getting dinner and talking together over dinner, by the time they would be ready for the phone call with Emma and Molly, it would be far too late and Molly would long be in bed asleep. So I'll have it at the beginning of next chapter, in the morning instead.

Quick question: Will Sarah attend the support group. Also, will Chuck go with her? Find that out soon! Not next chapter though!

Next Chapter: Chuck and Sarah's fourth? first date! See you all in a few days :)


	8. Chapter 8

_Hey. The reason I'm not showing Chuck's cybersecurity plans for Carmichael Industries right now and instead I'm just brushing them off without talking about them is because I don't intend to have Chuck take up that line of work in this fiction (and plus, irl, cybersecurity in my opinion sounds like the most boring job that I have ever heard so I have zero interest in typing up a story with that line of work as the primary focus as it would probably bore me to death in typing it all out). I'm probably going to need to create an OC character very shortly to get the team rolling on spy missions again._

 _Word Count for this Chapter: 12,039_

* * *

 **All Roads Lead Back Home**

 **Chapter Eight**

* * *

 **Six days since the beach**

After eating late night dinner together after Sarah's consultation last night, Chuck and Sarah had quickly departed for separate sleeping arrangements as they both began to feel exhausted after a very busy day. However, whilst Sarah and Chuck did indeed sleep alone again last night, Sarah had slept much better alone because she had tonight's plans consisting of a date together with him replaying on her mind, which had allowed her to quite easily drift off to sleep. It had taken Sarah less than a second to respond to Chuck's invitation once he had stopped cutely rambling. And if tonight's date is successful, as she hopes and desires it to be, then it is pretty safe to say that they will never be sleeping alone again, nor on a sofa for that matter. No, if tonight's date is successful, then Sarah is prepared to consummate their rekindling relationship this very same day. Which is entirely different to the last time they became official of course, because in Chuck's story to her at the beach, he had explained that they had pined for each other for several years before they were able to have each other. Well there's no longer any CIA and she is no longer his handler.

A smirk forms on her face on thinking about potential intimacy with Chuck tonight. And to state that she has just flew out of bed with a spring in her step would be an understatement.

 _We didn't really talk about the date at all last night because of how tired we both were._ _What will I wear? A_ _nd where should we go together? I am looking forward to tonight more than I ever have any night before._

On departing the main bedroom, Sarah heads to the bathroom first to freshen herself up. On finishing her routine, she then departs the bathroom and makes for the kitchen.

She takes a few short steps towards her destination until she can now see Chuck in her view. He's standing in the kitchen and he has his back turned. She opens her mouth to greet him but she stops short on noting a handheld phone receiver in his hand that is raised up to his ear. She pauses, as she enters contemplation and she begins to wonder who he is speaking to. She doesn't have to wait long to get the answer to that question, as she then hears him begin to speak.

"I'm doing good, El. Truly. Please don't worry about me. I'm big and ugly enough to look after myself, heh," she hears him joke and she immediately laughs a suppressed chuckle on hearing his words as a vibrant smile lights up her face on hearing her husband's humour. Even though he is probably going through one of the worst possible moments in his life, he still has his humour. And Sarah has to admit, she likes that A LOT!

 _I'd better make myself known to him just in case he turns around and thinks that I'm eavesdropping on him._

Raising her hand up to her mouth, she proceeds to cough innocently. The action immediately does its intended trick and she watches fondly as Chuck seems to jump out of his skin causing her to emit another suppressed chuckle and she watches as he turns to look at her. On them making eye contact, he grins at her and she watches as he then raises his free hand up and he points his index finger at her, obviously implying that he will be available to talk to her in one minute. She smiles at him in response, before mouthing, "ok," and she watches as he nods his head.

"I'd better go now, El. Sarah is awake and I'd very much like to talk to her," he then says as he stares right into her eyes as he says it.

 _I'd very much like to talk to you too, Chuck_

"Yeah, I'll tell her she is very much in your thoughts," he pauses, and Sarah and Chuck share another warm smile before he continues, "Ok, sis, I love you all and pass on my love. Ok, bye," she then watches as he ends the call and he averts his glance slightly to place down the handheld device before glancing back at her and he grins widely once more.

"Chuck, you didn't have to rush the conversation. I just didn't want to sneak on you and not alert you to my presence," she says sincerely.

"Sarah, you're not sneaking. I'm completely comfortable speaking to anybody infront of you. It's not like I'm going to say you have kidnapped me and you are holding me to ransom and you are abusing me, heh," he jokes as he begins to chuckle, causing Sarah to join him in the action.

"Har, har!" she then replies sarcastically. "I take your point though, Chuck."

He nods his head and they smile warmly at each other once more. "She was asking about you, by the way," he informs her and she nods her head.

"I heard. But I only feel able to deal with one problem at a time right now. I'm focusing all of my efforts to get to know you again, Chuck. It's even still a shock to me that my Mom and Molly are back in my life," she admits with a faint smile and he nods his head as she watches as a sympathetic smile forms on his face.

"We all get it, Sarah. And they'll all be there waiting for you as soon as you decide you feel comfortable enough to share your life again with them," he responds in a sincere tone and she nods and smiles warmly at him once more.

"Thank you for being so understanding," she says softly.

She watches him chuckle slightly before he responds, "It's my job, heh," he pauses, as he raises his hand once more, only this time he shows her his ring finger, which contains his wedding band "hello, husband."

She snickers briefly, before reverting to a smile. "I guess I should thank you then, for looking out for me," she says flirtatiously.

"I'll always look out for you, Sarah," he declares lovingly causing an adoring smile to form and she gazes affectionately at him.

"I'll hold you to that," she then says.

"Please do, heh" he says softly and they gaze lovingly and smile at each other once more. "Oh, by the way, I made sure to get up before you today, to avoid a repeat of yesterday."

Sarah's lips crease in sadness on hearing his admission.

"I'm sorry about that, Chuck. It was just me being on edge with you being on eggshells around me since I got back," she admits.

She watches him then nod his head in agreement before responding, "Well, there will be no more eggshells from me starting from last night. I promise."

She smiles once more. "Good."

"Breakfast?" he then asks and she furiously nods her head.

"Yes please," she states with a wide smile.

"Then take a seat and I'll bring it to you," he replies.

Sarah instantly becomes slightly fidgety, as she starts to protest being waited on, "Chuck..."

He interrupts her. "Nope. Sarah, this is all part of me doing more like I said and agreed to last night. So sit yourself down, relax and let me finish making breakfast for my lovely wife. I won't take no for an answer."

A huge smile forms once more on hearing his response.

 _I married a good one._

"Well when you put it like that, Chuck Bartowski, then what can I say?" she replies flirtatiously with a smile and he grins at her.

Sarah then moves into their dining area to sit down as instructed and Chuck appears a few minutes later armed with pancakes and orange juice.

They spend the next few minutes eating breakfast together whilst occasionally glancing at each other and giving each other warm smiles.

Sarah then interrupts the brief silence between the two of them. "Chuck, remember when you said in your note a few days ago that I wouldn't be missing out on much over breakfast?" she asks.

She watches him then nod his head. "You hate it, don't you?"

She shakes her head no, before responding, "No Chuck, I loved them. Breakfast was really nice, thank you."

She watches her husband grin at her before responding, "You're welcome."

They then enter a brief relaxing silence once more before Chuck interrupts the silence once more, "Uhm, Sarah?" he pauses until they gaze at each other.

"Yes, Chuck?" she asks on meeting his eyes with her own once more.

"Do you think we should call your Mom? I think she should know how you got on last night," he states

She smiles at him again. "I agree, Chuck. I wanted to do it last night but it was too late," she admits.

He nods. "Yeah it was," he then agrees.

"In fact, we're going to do it right now together," she then declares.

"Sarah, are you sure I mean," he attempts to protest.

She interrupts him, "Chuck, she's your family, remember. What did you say about eggshells earlier?"

"Right, right! Yeah, sorry," he concedes.

"Then let's do it right now," she says as she then stands up, quickly followed by Chuck and they move into their kitchen. On arriving at her destination of the phone, she pauses, as she doesn't know her mom's number.

"Um, where do we keep her number?" she asks sweetly and he chuckles lovingly on hearing her question.

"We have it stored as a contact on the handheld. Or we can just use one of our mobiles where we have her contacts anyway if you wish," he responds.

Sarah shakes her head. "It's fine. I'll find it. I need to learn how to use this thing again anyway," she says as the then proceeds to navigate the phonebook and sure enough finds her mothers name.

"What's the hands-free like?" she then enquires.

"It's great. I picked out the best one. I bet you're glad you married a nerd now, huh?" he jokes with a chuckle and she smirks in response.

Sarah then glances at Chuck a final time, before hitting call.

Sarah and Chuck then stand in wait in pause, before the call connects on the speaker of the handheld device and Sarah hears her mother speak into the receiver.

"Hi,"

"Hey, Mom. I'm with Chuck now, we have you on speaker. Are you ok to talk with us for a while?" she asks.

"Hi darlings. Yes, it's absolutely fine, I'm so glad you both called. I've not spoken to either of you for a few days and I've missed you both dearly, as has Molly," Emma responds causing Chuck and Sarah to fill up with love on hearing their mother's words.

"Hi Emma, we've missed you too," Chuck declares and he glances at Sarah and they both smile.

"How are you both doing?" Emma responds.

Sarah watches as Chuck nods at her from where they are stood close together in their kitchen as he then mouths, "you can answer."

Sarah nods her head before responding, "We're great, Mom. Right, Chuck?"

She watches as he smiles adoringly at her.

"Yeah, things are going great! I'm so happy to have her back with me," he declares and he stares into her eyes as he spoke out the words.

Sarah gives him a loving smile of her own before moving her hand to affectionately touch his shoulder for a brief moment before declaring, "And I'm happy to be back."

"You don't know how happy I am to hear that," Emma states emotionally causing yet more joyful smiles from the husband and wife on hearing their mother and mother-in-law's words to them both.

"We're heading out somewhere tonight, Mom," Sarah then informs her mother.

"Oh, are you both heading somewhere nice?" Emma asks inquisitively.

Sarah pauses to look at Chuck for a brief moment before replying, " We haven't talked about it yet. We'll probably talk about it after this call?"

She then watches as Chuck nods his head and they smile at each other again.

"I have a few ideas," Chuck then says and Sarah watches as he dances his eyebrows at her causing her to smirk.

"I mean this from the deepest corner of my heart: go out and enjoy yourselves," Emma replies passionately.

"Thanks, Mom," Sarah replies as she continues to gaze at Chuck who is continuing to gaze right back at her.

"Thanks, Emma," Chuck responds then pauses for the briefest of moments. "How have you been?" he then asks.

There's a brief pause, causing Chuck and Sarah to become a little anxious.

"Not good. I've been worrying about you both," Emma admits causing instant sadness to light up the faces of Chuck and Sarah.

"Mom," Sarah then protests her mother's words.

"Oh, Emma, please don't do that. We'll be fine, honestly," Chuck then says reassuringly and Sarah nods her head.

"We will. Besides, Mom, I have a bit of good news," Sarah pauses to allow her mom to digest the revelation, "I had an appointment with a neurologist last night. Chuck came with me. We wanted to call you last night but we got back too late."

On Sarah finishing speaking momentarily, she continues to gaze at Chuck while they both continue to talk to their mother.

"It's absolutely fine. I did put Molly to bed early and then I had an early night myself," Emma pauses briefly to allow Chuck and Sarah to digest her words before continuing, "So, what's the good news?"

"Well, the consultant told me that there is no damage at all to my nervous system. But because of the nature of my job, I couldn't disclose to him what caused my memory loss. But he thinks that because there's no damage, my memory has just been suppressed not erased and there's a very real chance of me making a significant recovery," Sarah admits with a loving smile aimed for Chuck who gives her one right back and they move to hold hands to revel once more in the good news they had been given the previous night for a short moment.

On removing their hands from each other, Chuck and Sarah hadn't received a response from Emma who has gone silent and Sarah glances at Chuck once more with a look of confusion and he has the same expressions. He then mouths to her, "Is she ok?"

"Mom, are you still here? Are you ok?" Sarah asks immediately on receiving the cue from Chuck.

"I'm sorry," Emma responds emotionally and Chuck and Sarah both turn upset on their mother suffering right now.

"Mom, don't cry," Sarah responds soft and emotionally.

"Yeah, please don't," Chuck cuts in in a similar tone with similar distressed facial expressions of her own.

"I'm just so elated by the good news you both got," Emma declares causing smiles to return to the husband and wife once more.

"So are we, Mom," Sarah then replies as she continues to stare into Chuck's eyes.

"How's Molly?" Chuck then asks in an attempt to perk up his mother-in-law's mood.

"She really good. She misses you both," Emma declares.

"You'll have to come and visit us both really soon, Mom," Sarah responds and she watches as Chuck furiously nods his head and grins at her.

"We would love that. Actually, if you still have enough time, I'll go and fetch her and you can tell her the news yourselves?" Emma asks.

"Sure, my schedule is wide open today," Chuck responds.

Sarah nods her head on hearing Chuck's response. "Mine too," she then says.

"Ok, great. I'll put you on hold now," Emma responds before the call is then paused.

On the call being put on hold, Chuck and Sarah continue to stand stationary as they gaze at each other with loving facial expressions and they stand in pause until they begin to hear activity again less than a minute later.

"Ok, here she is," Emma says before the young married couple start to hear all kinds of interference as Emma is likely passing the phone over to her daughter.

"Chuck! Sarah!" Molly screeches into the phone causing instant loving chuckles from Sarah and Chuck.

"Hi, Molly," Sarah says affectionately.

"Hi Molly," Chuck replies in the same tone.

"We was just telling Mom that you can visit us again soon. If you want?" Sarah asks.

"Yay!" Molly screeches excitedly causing a continued look of happiness to remain present for the married couple. "Will Morgan be there too?"

Sarah then gazes at Chuck once more and he looks at her in an inquisitive way and she nods her head affirmatively.

"If you want him to," Chuck then responds on receiving confirmation from Sarah.

"I do! Thank you!" Molly replies excitedly.

"So what are you doing today, Molly?" Chuck asks and Sarah remains in joyful silence as she awaits the response to Chuck's question.

"Getting ready for school!" Molly declares enthusiastically.

"Oh that's nice. I miss school," Chuck declares.

 _I don't. I couldn't stand another moment longer with Dick Duffy or Heather Chandler_

"We hope you enjoy it, Molly," Sarah then adds in.

"Thank you," Molly replies affectionately.

Sarah then begins to hear interference in the conversation before she hears her mother speaking once more.

"It's getting late now. We'll have to let you both go or we'll be late," Emma declares.

"But Mom, I want to talk to Chuck and Sarah!" Sarah hears her adopted sister protest in the background.

"Molly, listen to your mother, ok? We'll talk to you again in a few days and we'll see you in about..." Chuck pauses, as he glances at Sarah to allow her to finish his response.

"A week. We'll have you over in a week. Ok?" she says warmly.

"Ok," Molly agrees.

"Goodbye then, Molly. We both love you," Chuck declares and Sarah looks at Chuck to smile adoringly at him once more.

"Yes we do, Molly," Sarah says affectionately.

"Goodbye!" Molly says and Sarah once more hears interference before she hears the sound of her mother's voice once more.

"Goodbye darlings. I love you both so, so much and please enjoy your night together."

"Thank you, we will," Chuck replies affectionately.

"Thanks, Mom, we love you too. Bye, Mom," Sarah responds.

"Bye," Emma replies a final time, before disconnecting the call.

On the call disconnecting, Sarah gazes at Chuck once more and they smile adoringly at each other for a long moment before Chuck states, "That was nice."

Sarah nods her head in agreement before admitting, "Yeah, it was."

"Now for our chat about our own plans?" He then asks.

She nods her head once more, before replying, "I thought you'd never ask."

He then grins at her, before responding, "Ok, bear with me a moment while I used the bathroom, heh,"

"Take your time," she replies with a warm smile which he returns before he then departs for the bathroom.

Sarah waits until Chuck enters the bathroom before she follows after him until entering their bedroom...

* * *

 **A few minutes later…**

Sarah is paused inside the master bedroom of their apartment as she continues to accustom herself to her properties that she possesses inside of this apartment and she is gathering laundry needed to be done when she hears the door to the bathroom open.

Immediately dropping her present task, she glances out into the hallway and she watches her husband almost walk past her before she calls, "I'm in here."

She watches him pause, before turning to face her and they smile warmly at each other once more.

"Oh," he says softly on meeting her glance.

"Change of scenery," she quips back with a loving smile.

"Cool," he laughs back.

They then move to take a seat on their bed together, and they enter into a moment of awkward silence as neither know how to begin the conversation which will be about plans for their forthcoming fourth first date. After a moment of pause and gazing at each other, they both go to speak at the same time.

"You're going first today," she says to him and they begin to chuckle together.

"Fair enough. You went first last night so it's only fair that I do today," he replies and she furiously nods her head in agreement with a wide smile.

"Sarah, it's so hard to accommodate your memory loss..." he pauses. "What I mean is, my mind is drawing up blanks on where we should go tonight. I've been thinking about it for hours and even in bed last night. I have never tried to date somebody I'm married to before."

"Neither have I, Chuck. It's a first for me too but like you said yesterday, we're unconventional, so we'll make it work," she replies with a wide smile which he returns.

"I don't doubt it. But Sarah, is there somewhere you'd like to go or are you happy for me to choose a place and surprise you with it this evening?" he asks.

She pauses to contemplate his question for a moment, before asking, "What did we do on our first date?"

"Our first real date?" he asks.

She nods. "Yep."

"We went to some kind of Chinese place. The food was out of this world," he declares with a loving grin.

A smile forms on her face before she responds, "Then that's where I want to go tonight."

She watches as he coughs and gets a little flustered. "Sarah are you sure…" he says hesitantly. "I mean, we have money now and that place was a Morgan recommendation when that was all I could really afford as times were a little tough back then, heh."

She responds instantly. "Chuck, if it was good enough for me back then, then it is now. I'm not used to this newfound wealth, remember?"

She watches as he contemplates her words for a brief moment. "Yeah, that's true I guess," he concedes.

Sarah then moves to stand up. "So, what was I wearing back then?" she asks as she walks away from their bed slightly in the direction of the wardrobe containing her outfits. She then gazes back at him and she watches him quirk his eyebrows in confusion to her question.

"You want to wear the same outfit?" he inquires.

"Chuck, I want my memories of you back. I will do _anything_ to get them back. We have already established on our own and with my consultant's help that I can remember things if there is a trigger for me to remember them. So I want to be in that exact moment that we were in how long ago was it?" she inquires.

"About four years ago," he informs her.

"Well then I want things exactly how they were four years ago," she responds as she begins to open the wardrobe but pauses as he begins speaking to her once more.

"What, the same conversation as well?" he jokes with a chuckle causing Sarah to smirk and shake her head.

"No, that would be a little too creepy. That would just be reading from a script. We aren't acting out our lives again, we are starting new memories but with a hope of me regaining those old ones in addition to the new ones. So, back on topic. What dress was I wearing?" she asks as she now glances between her now opened wardrobe for outfits and back at Chuck occasionally and she watches as his eyes light up in lust.

"A stunningly beautiful purple one," he declares with a wide grin and she smirks approvingly at him.

"Was it that good?" she asks.

"Sarah, you were drop dead stunningly beautiful and I was and still am the luckiest guy on the planet," he declares and a radiant smile suddenly erupts on her face on hearing his compliment to her.

Sarah then also giggles approvingly on hearing her husband's words to her.

 _If you keep saying things like that to me, Chuck, then we won't need the date and I'll devour you right here and now._

Sarah then spends the next minute or two searching until finding a purple dress. She digs it out and she glances at Chuck who is staring intently at her and she then extends it out to show him it.

"So, was it this one? she asks him with a loving smile as her gaze shifts between the dress in her hand and Chuck.

"Yes, that one. I'm surprised you still have it actually," he responds.

A smile forms on her face before she responds, "Me too."

"You're really going to wear that same dress?" he then asks jokingly.

"Try and stop me," she retorts as she places the dress on the bed before moving to sit next to Chuck again.

"I wouldn't dream of it," he retorts.

"Good. I'd hate to hurt my date before we can actually have it together," she responds playfully.

"You wouldn't hurt me," he replies and she watches him dance his eyebrows at her causing her to smirk.

"If you try and stop me from wearing this I would," she responds flirtatiously.

"So what time do you want to go?" he then asks.

"Whenever you want, Chuck. My schedule is wide open," she responds whilst drawing out 'wide'

"About seven?" he then suggests.

She nods. "That sounds great," she admits.

"Are we driving tonight, or?" Chuck then asks.

She shakes her head no. "No, Chuck. I want to have a good time. I'm not a CIA agent any more and for the first time ever, I want to go out on a real date and drink as much as I want in the company of who I want. Sounds good?" she asks him with a loving smile and she watches a wide grin form on his face.

"Sounds perfect," he responds softly and Sarah beams him another loving smile.

There is then a brief silence as the husband and wife sit and revel in each others company for a short moment.

"I'll get ready in Morgan's tonight and then come back and we'll head out," Chuck says as he breaks the silence.

"Chuck, you don't have to," she responds sincerely.

"No, but we'll be tripping over each other while getting ready. It's probably easier for us if I get ready elsewhere and then we won't be in a panic."

She nods. "Yeah, you're probably right."

"I should probably go to work now, Sarah. I have a lot of plans for Carmichael Industries that need ironing out. I miss you as my partner," he declares with a faint smile.

"Chuck, we'll talk about all of those kind of things tonight on our date. Ok?" she asks with a warm smile.

He nods. "OK."

"I'll see you tonight then," Sarah replies as she stands up and Chuck joins her in the action.

"Looking forward to it," Chuck replies with a warm smile.

"Me too," Sarah replies as they move to embrace together inside their bedroom.

On parting from each others arms, Sarah says, "I'll show you out."

He nods as the husband and wife depart their bedroom and Sarah follows closely behind Chuck until they arrive at the door to their apartment as Chuck then quickly departs…

* * *

 **A short while later**

Sarah is presently seated at the desk in the main bedroom of her and Chuck's home. She had just turned on the computer inside the room and she waits for it to load. On it loading, she opens the internet browser as she then contemplates for a long moment what she wants to search for, before settling on a decision as she starts to type 'If you have amnesia, do you lose your feelings?' into the search engine.

She pauses for a short moment, before she jabs her finger and she hits enter. On the search results returning, Sarah then begins to trawl through numerous articles in search of clarity for her present thoughts. It's not that Sarah does not trust the consultant's diagnosis given to her yesterday. Sarah would just like to see it before her own eyes, in her own time, in her own company.

She then becomes so occupied for the next forty minutes searching through numerous articles on a wide range of topics from memory loss to dementia to ways to cope with the impact of memory loss before finally feeling satisfied with the information she had learnt about her present health condition. The article that stood out most in her mind from the numerous that she had read through was an article detailing a study in which researchers showed that patients with Alzheimer's disease often still feel strong emotions to family members even though they can no longer remember them. The study also states that whilst patients might forget a joke or a meaningful conversation held, the warm feelings associated with the experience often stuck around and boosted the mood and happiness of the patient. The article also stated that a simple visit or phone call from family members might have a lingering positive influence on a patient's happiness even though the patient may quickly forget the visit or phone call. On the other hand, routine neglect from staff at nursing homes may leave the patient feeling sad, frustrated and lonely even though the patient can't remember why.

Feeling satisfied with her search, she closes down the computer when she is alerted to her mobile phone vibrating on the desk.

Moving her hand, she takes her phone into the palm of her hand as she begins to study the display of the device. A smile immediately seeps through her lips on reading the short text from Chuck. _It reads:_ **Can't wait for tonight ;)**

She then swipes her thumb on the device to reply to him before typing out: **Guess what? Me too ;** **)**

On hitting send, she smiles at herself approvingly before she changes into her running wear before heading out to jog…

* * *

 **A few hours later**

"Morgan, thanks for letting me do this," Chuck says on returning home from work as he stands together at the fountain outside his home with his best friend.

"No problem at all, Chuck. I'm just glad you took my advice. It's the first step to winning your wife back, Chuck."

Chuck nods his head. "You were right, buddy. I need to do more and show Sarah that I'm worth sticking around for," he admits.

Chuck watches as his best friend furiously nods his head in agreement before replying, "Yes, Chuck, you do."

"I'll be back in a short while. I'm just going to collect the things I need to get ready."

"Sounds good. Take your time. By the way, are you sure it's a good idea to return to the same place you went four years ago? That was my recommendation and whilst I will always recommend the food in that restaurant, Chuck, you both have the money right now to go to a five-star experience."

"Morgan, it's what she wants. And if it's good enough for her, then it's good enough for me," Chuck replies and Morgan nods his head in acceptance.

"See you soon then, Chuck," Morgan replies and Chuck nods his head before he walks in the direction of his home. On entering, he calls out, "Sarah?" as he proceeds to walk deeper into his home and glances around for his wife to no avail. He continues into the hallway and he calls out "Sarah, it's only me," once more only a little louder this time.

He then hears her shout, "Ok, Chuck. I'm in the bath!"

His eyes then fix onto the bathroom and the door is shut. He walks to it slightly before responding, "Am I ok to open the door? I won't look I just don't want us both to have to keep shouting through the closed door, heh," he asks.

"Yeah, that's fine!" she calls out to him once more.

Chuck then moves to open the bathroom door. On it opening slightly, he talks to her once more, "I won't be here long. I'm just going to grab some stuff and then I'm heading back over to Morgan's to change. Is seven still fine?" he asks softly.

"Yeah, seven is great, Chuck," she replies.

"Ok. I'll give you some privacy again now.

"Ok, she replies.

Chuck then closes the door once more. On closing it, he proceeds into the bedroom to collect his attire, his shaver, cologne and some aftershave balm.

On finishing, he does a final mental checknote to be sure he has everything. Feeling satisfied, he departs the room. On returning outside in the hallway, he calls out to Sarah once more.

"Ok, Sarah, I have everything I need. I'm going now. I'll see you at seven," he calls out softly to his wife.

"Ok!" she calls back out to him.

Chuck then departs his home to head to Morgan's to get himself ready for tonight's date…

* * *

Chuck had been gone about twenty minutes and Sarah has just finished bathing and is stood inside of her bathroom drying herself down. She has plenty of time to prepare for tonight's date and she wants everything to go perfect tonight. She had already shaven all over before taking her bath and she now moves to pick up moisturising cream before moving to apply it to her full body. On completing her task, she changes into a matching underwear set before feeling safe to depart the bathroom as she has the privacy of her own home without interruptions until Chuck returns to collect her. On departing the bathroom, she seeks to locate her hair dryer before spending the next few minutes blow drying her hair. On completing the task, she spends several more minutes straightening and laying out her hair. She pauses in thought for a long moment as she begins to wonder how he likes her hair. She wishes she could remember things about him and the things that he likes about her and what gets him going and aroused. She tries briefly to remember something, anything but nothing comes before she blocks it completely from her mind and she refuses to dwell on her health condition right now or else it may ruin her mood for tonight.

She then walks over to where all of her shoes are located and she takes a few minutes in contemplation over what to wear before opting with six inch stilettos. She then picks them up and places them next to the bed where her dress is located.

On completing her choice of shoes task, she returns to the bathroom as she begins to brush her teeth. On completing her latest task, she returns to the bedroom and she pauses as her eyes survey a drawer. She walks over to it again briefly, and she opens it to see if the contents are still inside. Her eyes glance onto a box of condoms, which she had purchased earlier in the day on returning from her run. She's not sure if intimacy will occur with Chuck inside of this bedroom tonight. But it's better being safe than sorry and if it is to occur then the last thing either of them need is an uncomfortable situation of not being able to locate any protection.

Returning to her task at hand, she glances at herself in the mirror which gives her the cue to root out her makeup bag. On locating it, she removes a blusher and starts to apply foundation sparingly to her cheeks. On completing the task and feeling comfortable enough that only a small amount had been applied, she takes out lipstick gloss and begins to apply it to herself. On completing it, she walks back over to the bed as she begins to survey tonight's dress.

"I hope it still fits me," she says aloud.

 _What will I wear if it no longer fits? Screw it, I'll decide that if and when..._

Sarah then takes the dress into her hands, and she proceeds to climb herself into it. On fully fixing the dress in place, which is still a perfect fit after four years, she glances at herself in the mirror once more.

 _Wow, I can't believe this dress still fits me..._

On completing her dress fitting, she walks over to the dresser table once more and she takes an Olympéa Paco Rabanne perfume bottle into her hand. She pauses momentarily, in fear of applying something to herself that she may no longer like. She decides to squirt a small sample onto her wrist and she then raises her wrist up to her nose to sniff the scent and by god, it's the most amazing perfume she has ever smelt in her life. What stands out most from the scent is a salted vanilla taste.

She pauses briefly before applying it to herself, and she moves to pick up the accompanying box so that she can study its information. The box details that in addition to the salted vanilla scent, it contains ginger lily, jasmine, mandarin, ambergris and sandalwood.

On finishing reading the box, she places it back into its spot and she picks up the perfume bottle once more before applying two squirts of the fragrance onto her person.

Sarah is now just about ready for tonight's date as she returns to the bed and she moves to sit down to put on her heels. On completion of the task, she stands up and she glances at herself one final time in the mirror, before departing the bedroom to head for the kitchen to pour herself a mini glass of wine to calm her pre date jitters...

 **A short while later**

It is now 7pm and Sarah had just finished consuming the small glass of wine when the door to their apartment knocks.

She immediately departs the kitchen to answer the door as a sudden rush of anxiety hits her and she begins to panic for the briefest of moments just in case she has forgotten to do anything. Continuing to walk the final distance to the door, she convinces herself that she has done everything that she needed to do and a loving smile forms on her face before she raises her hand and opens the door to greet Chuck.

On the door opening, she pushes it open wide and she accompanies her loving smile with intimate eye contact as she begins to gaze at him for a short moment and he gazes right back at her.

She then quickly begins to take in his appearance for the briefest of seconds as she eyes him up and down. He is clean shaven and his hair is neat and smart. He's wearing a tailored Navy shirt with matching jeans and smart shoes. She can smell the scent of his cologne and she already knows it to be that of Dior Sauvage as she had encountered the bottle numerous times in their bedroom over the previous days. She hadn't smelt it before now however, and just like her own, the scent is out of this world.

"So, how do I look?" she asks him with a seductive smile just a few seconds after having opened the door to him.

She watches, as he glances her up and down as she begins to feel a sudden urge and overwhelming desire to please him, as if she is auditioning for a luxurious multi-million dollar modelling contact.

"Beautiful, deadly, gorgeous, perfect, irresistible," he declares causing Sarah's breath to catch at the sincerity of his compliments.

On taking an extended moment to register his compliment, an enormous smile forms on her face and she stares into his eyes and begins to eye him up.

 _Screw the date..._

"You don't look so bad yourself," she responds.

"Please, I'm fantastic," he replies sarcastically to her.

"Yeah, you are..." she replies and as she does so, she feels another memory flash into the forefront of her mind as she zones out and begins to replay it in vivid detail.

 **~~~ Chuck and Sarah were seated at a restaurant together. Due to their intimate conversation, she has ascertained that they are out on a date.**

 **"So our first date is a Morgan recommendation?" she asks.**

 **"Wow, no faith in the little bearded man, ok. I think you should know he's always been supportive of our fake relationship. And he's never found it remotely unbelievable that a guy could could be dating an uh, you know," he responds.**

 **"What?" she asks.**

 **"You know, you," he responds.**

 **"What about me?" she asks.**

 **"You're really going to make it say it aren't you? Ok fine, a girl like you or more appropriately a woman like you. And a smart one at that, and not to mention cool and extremely beautiful. And you can stop me any time with the compliments if they're becoming, you know," he responds.**

 **"No, that was uh, very sweet," she responds.**

 **"Sweet, golly gee thanks for making me feel like I'm eight," he responds.**

 **"Well you're not so bad yourself," she responds.**

 **"Please, I'm fantastic," he responds.**

 **"Yeah, you are," she replies. ~~~**

"Sarah! Are you ok?" she hears him ask and she immediately snaps out of her dazed and confused state of mind and she focuses back to look at Chuck standing outside their home.

"Yeah. I just had another memory," she informs him with absolutely no doubt in her mind that what she just had was another memory as she can now recognise what is and isn't a memory as all of the previous ones that she had, had in recent days occurred exactly the same way as this one just did.

"Yeah. You kind of zoned out for a long moment there. I was getting worried" he responds and she watches as a huge smile forms.

"I think I just remembered our first date," she admits with a loving smile of her own.

"Heh, well it's too late to change or cancel it now," he responds with a chuckle and she continues to beam a loving smile at him.

"I wouldn't dream of it," she states.

"So are you ready? We can talk about the memory on the way," he replies.

She nods her head before responding, "Yes, Chuck, let's go."

They smile at each other once more as Sarah then steps out of the apartment and she closes it behind her…

* * *

 **A short while later**

Chuck and Sarah have now arrived at the very same place that their first real date was held in four years ago.

"I'm getting so much deja vu being back here now," Chuck admits as he starts to chuckle.

She laughs before responding, "Me too, after the memory I just had."

He smiles lovingly at her before responding, "Sarah, that memory you just had was the biggest one you have had."

Hearing his response to her causes a titanic smile to form before responding, "I know."

"And to think that we agreed to come here and you wearing the same dress all to try and see if you could remember it only for you to remember it without us having to do anything, heh," he chuckles causing Sarah to do the exact same.

"Yeah," she responds.

"We could have gone somewhere better," he then states with a faint smile.

She responds instantly, "Chuck, it's fine. It's about the company, not the service. I'm not here to be waited on, I'm here for you," she states as she stares into his eyes with a loving smile which he returns.

"Me too. So have I told you how beautiful you are today?" he asks.

"I don't think so," she replies cute and innocently as she continues to stare intimately at him.

"Well Sarah, you're beautiful," he replies bluntly.

Sarah immediately blushes on feeling his deeply sincere compliment.

 _Chuck is definitely a record breaker. I don't think I've ever blushed on a date before._

"You know, I'm surprised this dress still fits me to be honest," she says nervously. Yes, Sarah Walker, nervous. Afraid of not pleasing the man infront of her tonight.

"What, are you serious?" he asks in bewilderment.

She smiles shyly and nods her head.

"Sarah, you're perfect. It will still fit you when you're sixty," he declares.

Hearing his latest compliment causes her to giggle sweetly in complete euphoria.

"I wish I could remember all of your compliments to me. That's what I want to remember most right now, Chuck," she admits.

"No problem. I'll just compliment you daily for the rest of our life," he declares with a loving smile.

"I can see why I fell for you," she says as she continues to stare into his eyes and she smiles adoringly...

 **A short while later**

Chuck and Sarah have just finished ordering their food and so far, in Sarah's opinion, the date is going swimmingly. Chuck is the funniest, kindest, most passionate guy that she's ever met. Right now, she is feeling extremely lucky and blessed to be in his company. She's sure that if they weren't married, there would be an army of suitors waiting to get their claws into him. Which makes her feel extremely uncomfortable.

"Sarah, I understand that you can't rush back into that of a wife right now. But I just need you to know that I can't pretend to be your boyfriend," he admits.

Sarah moves to take his hand with her own from where they are seated. "Chuck, I don't expect that of you. We aren't getting divorced. I just need some time to come to terms with and to get over my health condition right now."

She then watches him move to place his free hand on top of her own. "Sarah, I completely understand. I need to come to terms with our situation myself and I don't want to rush either. We'll take it as slow as we both need to come to terms with what has happened to us both. Ok?" he asks.

She nods her head, as she smiles affectionately at him once more before responding, "Ok."

They then let go of each others hands and a short silence ensues until Chuck breaks it once more "So," he pauses until they make eye contact again "when you first got back, we agreed not to talk about our career plans together that night. And we haven't. But I think tonight is as good a time as any."

She nods at him, and gives him another loving smile before responding, "I agree, Chuck." as she then moves to take a sip of their wine that they had also ordered.

"So do you have any plans?" he enquires.

She smiles despondently at him and shakes her head slightly before responding, "As of now? Not really. I'm not sure what I'm going to do," she admits.

"What about Carmichael Industries? Do you want to come back and work with me? It's your company too," he responds.

"Chuck…" she pauses to build up the courage to open her heart to the man she married. "Being a spy was all I knew. And look where the spy life has got me. Brainwashed and suffering extreme amnesia, that's where. I have lost the best five years of my life, of that I have no doubt. I can remember so little about you nor our five perfect years." she pauses to fight back her emotions. She doesn't want to get upset tonight. Tonight is about rebuilding what Quinn took from them. Tonight is just about him and her and on successfully controlling her emotions, she continues, "you know, around the time I gave Molly to my Mom, I was strongly considering leaving the CIA anyway."

"Really?" he asks.

She nods and smiles lovingly at him once more. "Yeah, I was strongly considering it. Mom even told me I could stay with them and leave behind the spy life for good. I probably should have but then I would never have met you," she finishes and she moves to take hold of his hand once more and they smile at each other again whilst continuing to stare intimately at each other. Nothing else matters in this moment other than her and him.

"You wanted to leave the spy life anyway in recent months. Maybe its just your subconscious thought carrying it on kind of like the emotions and feelings that your consultant told you were still there or maybe it's both what has happened to us in conjunction with that."

"Maybe. Chuck, all I know is that I loathe and deeply resent the CIA for what it has done to you and to me."

"Sarah, I get why you don't want to spy anymore after what it has done to you,"

"And to you, Chuck," she interrupts.

He nods. "But what about Carmichael Industries? I miss my partner."

Sarah sighs. "But it's still spying, Chuck."

"Sarah, we was planning to shift Carmichael Industries into cyber security. It was your own idea. You decided you didn't want to be a spy and put yourself in danger any more. You wanted to settle down," he reveals.

"But you're still spying right now, correct?" she asks.

"Well right now we're defunct," he admits.

"But if you weren't?" she asks as she takes another sip of her wine.

He pauses briefly to cough before responding, "Then we would be, yeah," as he nods his head.

"Then Chuck, I can't come back. I'm sorry. Even if the company shifted to cyber security, you would still be doing some contract work for the CIA. I need to find myself again in ways other than spying," she states.

"Sarah, I won't force you into a decision. Not gonna do that. If you don't want to spy any more, it's your decision. I will support it because I love you," he declares and he reaches out to connect his hand with her own as she continues to gaze into his eyes and smiles invitingly at him.

"Then what about the support group your consultant mentioned?" he then asks her.

Sarah's body language immediately turns apprehensive on hearing his question. "Chuck... Group therapy ain't really my thing," she admits as she begins to laugh briefly.

He chuckles and nods his head before responding, "Sarah, I get it. I wouldn't want to either. But you don't have to talk, you can just sit in silence. I can even come with you and provide support for you," he states as he continues to take hold of her hand and Sarah stares intimately into the eyes of her soulmate.

On her not responding to him, he continues, "You might even find something that you can do there. If you don't want to return to Carmichael Industries. At least think about it and don't just outright dismiss it, ok?"

She nods and she smiles warmly at him before responding, "Ok," and they then separate their two hands that had been connected since Chuck had took her hand when expressing his love for her and they then take another mouthful of their drinks...

 **A short while later**

Chuck and Sarah have now started to eat together.

"Wow, this food really is good," Sarah states as she takes a mouthful of food.

"Yeah it is, actually it's even better than the time before," he declares.

"So what's the one thing you wanted out of our first real date the last time we was here that didn't occur?" she asks him.

"We almost kissed," he laughs out to her and she smirks adoringly.

"What stopped us?" she inquires as she gazes into his eyes.

"We were surrounded by bad guys. It was when we thought my time as the intersect was coming to an end. A new one had been built and I was to be replaced so I could continue my normal life. I asked you out on the date and you accepted and we ended up right here. Only the final missing part of the intersect that I had recovered was stolen once more by a guy called Mr Colt who showed up here and attempted to apprehend us until Casey showed up in a Crown Vic and smashed through the window, heh."

On Chuck finishing the story, Sarah starts to laugh and they share loving smiles.

"Chuck?" she asks.

"Yeah?" he responds as they continue to gaze at each other.

"Kiss me," she demands and she smiles invitingly at him and he grins at her in response. She watches as he then glances around the room which causes her to get a little antsy as she is waiting for him to kiss her.

"What are you doing?" she inquires on being unable to wait any longer.

"I'm looking around for assassins. I'm making sure it doesn't happen again, heh," he chuckles causing her to smirk once more.

"Oh you nerd! I'm still waiting, by the way," she informs him with a seductive smile.

"Sorry," he responds, as he starts to lean towards her and she meets him halfway as they connect their lips together for a long moment and Sarah closes her eyes as she becomes lost in the moment. She can taste the wine on his lips. And the scent of his cologne causes her to become very aroused. They continue to kiss until they have to separate for air and on doing so, Sarah opens her eyes as a wide, loving smile forms and she watches as one takes shape on his face too.

On restoring her breath from the passionate kiss, Sarah says "see, tonight wasn't wasted. We've already got to do something we were unable to last time and without the leash of the CIA around my neck, I feel like a normal girl for the first time in a long time," she admits and she watches as her husband grins adoringly at her once more.

"Heh, yeah. It's a million times better already," he declares and she giggles approvingly.

"The night isn't done yet, Chuck," she then replies flirtatiously and she watches him cough as he becomes a little flustered and she smirks approvingly...

 **A short while later**

Chuck and Sarah are still in the midst of their date. They are continuing to enjoy each others company and they are just gazing and locked in conversation together as if nothing else matters or exists. They are locked in perfect trance in their own little world with only Chuck and Sarah present in it.

"So you went to Stanford?" she asks him and he nods his head.

"Yeah," he replies with a loving smile.

"What did you take?" she asks.

"Computer engineering. I almost graduated but Bryce had kicked me out. Though I'm not sure how I feel about it because if I was forwarded for the CIA, I might have been kept locked in a bunker like a kid called Lazzlo I once encountered."

"Who's that?" she inquires.

"He was a super clever guy we encountered on a mission. The government kept him locked up to do their bidding. They'd found him at an early age and his life consisted of living in a bunker until he escaped and that's when we found him."

"You deserved a better life than that, Chuck," she declares affectionately to him with a smile.

"Yeah…" he agrees.

 **A short while later**

Chuck and Sarah have just finished eating together. For Chuck, this date had gone perfect. It's been one of if not the best that they have both gone on. Though Chuck is beginning to get a little nervous. They have already kissed a few times and his wife is beginning to get quite needy. It's not that Chuck doesn't want intimacy with his wife. He loves and idolises her. But his wife presently isn't the Sarah he married. It is being a little selfish, but he wants back the Sarah he married before he can intimately open himself up to her. Because at the forefront of his mind, he still has that fear that she will decide it's too much for her and she will take a one way flight somewhere far, far away from him and never return. And as such, it's for that reason why he is scared to become too intimate with her.

"So, Chuck, what do you want to do now?" she asks him.

"How about a walk together under the night sky? I'll show you some sights? he asks.

"Yeah," she agrees.

Chuck and Sarah then depart the restaurant and they begin to walk around as Chuck shows Sarah some local spots.

"I've really enjoyed tonight, Chuck," she says as she cosies up into him.

"Sarah, me too. I think It's the best date I have been on," he declares.

"Me too," she admits with a loving gaze.

They then stop walking, as they gaze into each others eyes. He can detect a lustful look in his wife's eye right now, as she stays in his close proximity from where they had been walking together and he watches as she closes the gap to kiss him again.

On their lips connecting, Chuck closes his eyes and he attempts to fight off the doubt that Sarah won't leave him after opening himself up intimately once more and he tries desperately to become lost in the touch of his wife but he is unsuccessful. He then starts to feel Sarah running her hands over his torso and he senses that now is a good time to stop and he breaks from the passionate kiss as he was evidently not as invested in it as she presently is and it's not fair to lead her on.

"I think we should head back," he declares.

She nods and smiles affectionately at him, "Yeah. Good idea."

 **A short while later**

A slightly drunk Chuck and Sarah have just arrived back at their apartment complex arm in arm. They then walk the short distance to their door as a merry Chuck fiddles around with the lock with his key for a brief moment until the door clicks open. Chuck allows Sarah to enter first and he follows after her, on entering, he continues to gaze at Sarah as he stretches out his arm behind him to close the door and he watches as Sarah smiles affectionately at him which he returns.

On the door fully closing, Sarah then moves into his proximity once more and she grabs hold of his shirt as she adjusts herself to kiss him. This kiss is the most passionate that they have shared since before Quinn had taken her away from him. They stay locked like this for a long moment and Sarah's tongue begins to wage a battle inside Chuck's mouth and he feels her hand moving all over his torso with another playing with his thigh. Chuck's body temperature quickly heats up a million percent and his brain begins to wage a war as to whether he should allow strong intimacy to occur with Sarah tonight as he recognises that they are quickly reaching the point of no return as Sarah is beginning to become extremely turned on. After kissing for a long moment more, Sarah breaks the kiss and she gazes lustfully into his eyes.

"Chuck, I want you," she breathes hoarsely into his mouth and she smiles seductively at him once more.

 _Don't lead her on, Chuck. Tell her you're not ready… But I don't want to hurt her. Maybe I can try to see if I can do this. She is my wife after all. It's not like she is a stranger. She can't remember me right now but she's already told me that she wants to remember me. How can she love me again if I won't have sex with her?_

"Sarah, I don't think I can," he protests in a deeply conflicted state of mind.

He watches her frown on hearing his response. "Chuck, whats wrong? I can't describe how much I want you right now. And I know you still want me, I can feel it," she states with a seductive smirk, as she glances down to where her hand is positioned.

"God, Sarah, you have no idea. I love you more than anything in this world," he declares powerfully. "I just... I can't right now. I feel so uncomfortable because of your health condition. It's really messing with my head and I can't get my head around it. I don't think I'm ready yet," he admits.

"Chuck, come on, we'll go slow I'll be gentle & understanding," she breathes to him as she attempts to touch him up once more.

He shakes his head sympathetically and he watches as his wife begins to get a bit frustrated with him.

"Sarah, I'm sorry. I know you're upset but I'm not prepared to go this far right now. It's just too out of my comfort zone, I'm sorry. Sarah, I want to make love but you want sex and it doesn't feel right..."

And as soon as he had said the last words, he realises how bad that came out and his face fills up with instant regret.

 _You idiot, Chuck!_

"Oh way to put it like that, Chuck!" she snaps into his face.

"Sarah, I didn't... I'm sor," he starts but is interrupted.

"Goodnight, Chuck!" she shouts into his face before storming off.

"Sarah!" he calls to her but by now she had already stormed away from him.

"I'm sorry honey," he breathes despondently as his mind fills up with deep guilt and shame...

* * *

 **A few minutes later**

Sarah is presently laying on her side on the bed in the main bedroom under the duvet with her back turned to the door. She has watery eyes from Chuck's words to her. His point had largely been correct. Sarah probably did just want sex from Chuck tonight. Just as Chuck probably is correct in that he wants to make love. It's not fair on him and he shouldn't have been dealt the cards that he now has. But what about her? She is deeply attracted to him and it had been the best date and probably the best night of her life. Is it so wrong that she wants and wanted to express intimacy with a man she is deeply attracted to? It's not her fault that Quinn captured her and erased her memories of him. That bastard has done what is looking like irreparable damage to the relationship of Chuck and Sarah and if he was still alive she would probably fire a minigun this time at him instead.

Breathing out a deep sigh, she freezes her actions when she hears the door to the bedroom open.

 _Please go away. I don't want you to see me like this, Chuck. I've never shown any man this much need that I have for you right now._

"Sarah..." she hears him say softly.

Sarah chooses to ignore him, as she starts to sniffle her nose and she moves her hand to wipe her eye to remove the tears from where she is laying.

"I'm so sorry," she hears him say remorsefully.

She continues to ignore him as she plays deaf and she continues to glance at the wall from where she is laying.

"Please can we talk," she hears him ask softly once more.

But she still continues to ignore him and she hears him breathe out a deep sigh.

"Good night then," he says defeatedly and he sighs in resignation once more which causes her to finally turn to face him. On now facing in his direction, she looks distantly at him, the emotion still pouring out of her face.

"Sarah, honey, I'm so sorry," he says shamefully which causes Sarah's eyes to gloss all over again and she moves her hand to wipe her eye once more.

"Do you want me to leave you alone? I understand if you do. What I said was so wrong," he asks.

However, she doesn't register his question, as her mind is busy elsewhere with one of her own questions. "Why did this have to happen to us, Chuck? What did we do to deserve this shitty situation we are now both in?" she asks despondently and she watches as he instantly walks over to where she is laying and he moves to sit on the edge of the bed and she stares distantly into his eyes with grief.

"Sarah, it's a test. We can come through this," he says as he moves to connect his hand onto the duvet and she feels it land on her arm from where she is laying.

"Stay with me," she asks vulnerably as she continues to gaze distantly into his eyes.

"Are you sure?" he asks apprehensively.

"Chuck..." she pauses to look emotionally into his eyes. "Stay with me. Don't undo everything that's happened between us tonight."

She watches him nod his head and the husband and wife give each other a weak smile.

"So come on then," she says as she opens the duvet covers and he smiles as he kicks off his shoes and climbs into bed with her.

"This is the first time we have willingly been in the same bed since before you was taken," he declares to her on finishing his repositioning as they gaze at each other from where they are laying together.

"I know," she admits as she gazes into his eyes.

"Sarah, I love you. I always have and I always will. Your condition is just doing all kinds of things to mess with my mind. I'm so sorry," he admits emotionally.

"Chuck, it's playing with mine too," she responds in the same tone.

She watches him nod his head from where they are laying together.

"I know. And I'm so sorry for what has happened to you. I wish I could have saved you - when it mattered most," he declares hoarsely and she watches as his eyes gloss and he gets upset.

"Chuck, I'm still here. You haven't lost me. I'm different right now but I'm still Sarah. I'm still the Sarah that likes you a lot. Chuck, it will take me some time to get back to how you want me to be," she admits emotionally to him and she moves her hand to connect with his face and he returns the same action to her in kind.

"Sarah, I can wait. Just seeing your face is enough," he declares with a loving grin. "And I'm so sorry for what I said when we got back."

"Chuck, it's ok. You were right. I do want sex and I probably wouldn't be able to express love with you right now. But I want you and I can't hide that. You make me feel things I've never felt towards anybody before. I feel so happy and comfortable whenever I'm around you. You're the best guy I have ever met in my life, Chuck Bartowski," she declares with an adoring smile.

She watches him smile back, before responding, "Sarah, I won't keep you waiting forever. Just give me a week to get my head around our situation, your condition, and everything that has happened to us and if you still want," he pauses to cough causing her to smirk at his fluster "you know, in a few days, then I promise you I won't rebuff your attempts any further."

"One week and not a second more," she warns him and he nods his head in acceptance.

"I promise," he responds with a loving smile.

"You had better be worth the wait," she says with a smirk.

"Trust me, I am," he replies as he dances his eyebrows at her causing her to giggle approvingly as she gazes at him for a long moment before she decides to turn away from him but she immediately backs herself up into his figure as she strongly desires to feel her body against his own tonight. He can at least give her that much. She then feels his arms wrap around her, and she snugs even tighter into his frame behind her.

"Goodnight, Sarah. I love you," she hears him whisper into her ear causing a wide loving smile to form on her face from where she is laying into her husband.

"Goodnight, Chuck," she responds softly, before sleep quickly overtakes the married couple...

 **End of Chapter**

 **AN** Hey guys :) It's important to note that whilst intimacy may come back first, that's easy. As Sarah is strongly attracted to him once more as proven in this chapter and there's no asset/handler standing between them any more.

It's a lot harder for her to become a wife again though and that is not even taking into consideration how hard it is for Chuck to adjust to their present situation as you saw in the end of this chapter and we're going to have to work on that quite a bit to get back to how Charah were before Quinn captured Sarah and suppressed her memory.

So the date didn't end how Sarah wanted it to end but this is the first time they have willingly slept together in their bed since before Quinn captured her. It's progress.

I'd love to hear your thoughts and until next time, I hope you all have a good day :)

Next Chapter: The morning after Charah's (successful?) date and Sarah finds something in her life that could potentially allow her to find herself once more.


	9. Chapter 9

**AN** If you read my latest chapter of High School Sweethearts, you will have noticed that I'm feeling a bit dismayed with this fiction right now. I've never really cared much about how many views my stories get. I have always stated that I would very much prefer ten or fifteen interactive viewers than five hundred silent ones and I still stand by that statement. However, my view-count is at an all time low for my time on fanfiction and each chapter the review count becomes less and less and even favorites and follows are decreasing and I simply don't know what I am doing wrong in this fiction which is causing me to feel a bit disheartened as this will likely be a thirty chapter story or more and the average chapter length in this fiction is 10k which is more than double my average in all of my other fics and it's looking like people aren't really with this story for the long haul which has left me not really wanting to ink out a further 21 or more chapters over the next two or three months when I could be doing something else with my time instead. If the downward spiral continues, then I may even remove all plot from the story and just finish with one big, long 20-30k epilogue in a kind of format similar to one of my all-time favorite Chuck stories 'Unforgettable' and just end the story in a way that I feel happy with and move on to do other things.

 **AN2** Mike, I just wanted to hold off on the sexual intimacy for a little longer. I just didn't feel like it should have occurred in the previous chapter. The issue in Charah's relationship for the previous few chapters were Sarah's inner thoughts of not sleeping in the same bed with him. Well that was resolved last chapter and the upcoming arc of their relationship will be them getting to the point where they feel comfortable enough to resume having sex.

* * *

 **All Roads Lead Back Home**

 **Chapter Nine**

* * *

 **One week since the beach**

Sarah is now waking up inside of the bed that she has spent the past few years of her life sleeping in. Not that she can remember that of course, as likely ninety nine point nine percent of her memories are still missing. She isn't going to dwell on that fact however, because whilst her memories are not back, she is however sleeping next to her husband once more. And as Sarah begins to open her eyes, a smile begins to seep through her lips. Obviously, she isn't feeling as happy and as content with herself as she would have been feeling right now if she were to have had sex with Chuck last night. But she still is waking up in the arms of somebody who loves her unconditionally. Which is a reasonable enough compromise and a close second best when you factor in that before Chuck, her life was just about the next mission. Before Sarah had first met Chuck five years ago, she had been forced into completing her red test before subsequently being posted to Budapest in where Ryker had attempted to use a baby for his own sinister gains. Those two missions in particular had given Sarah strong doubts as to whether she could continue her life in the CIA. Sarah is happy to finally be away from that lifestyle which culminated in her losing all memory of her husband and of their life that they had lived together since meeting each other. She's not sure if she is feeling this way because of how she had felt just before Chuck. Or, if it's her subconscious state of mind carrying on from her earlier plans to quit spying in recent months as Chuck had informed her of that development last night on their date.

Wriggling and backing herself up slightly, she can still feel his body connected to her own. Gently, she begins to brush her hand over his own hand from where his arm is placed over her as a familiar feeling rushes into her mind that tells her she has done this action before with him. She watches and feels as he begins to play with her own hand in return before she startles for the briefest of seconds by him speaking.

"Good morning," she hears him say softly.

"Good morning," she responds in the same tone and they then pause in silence briefly.

"Isn't this a better way to wake up, Chuck?" she asks eventually as they continue to play around with each others hand.

"Much better," he admits. "I've been awake quite a while. I was too comfortable to move."

Her earlier formed smile from waking up in the arms of Chuck extends further on hearing his admission as she responds, "What time is it?"

"I'm not sure. I'll look," he responds as he attempts to move but her hand holds him in place.

"No, don't move. I want to stay like this forever," she declares softly.

She then hears him chuckle, before she reluctantly lets go of his hand and she feels him lift himself up behind her.

"It's 10:30," he declares to her after a short moment and a look of amazement appears on Sarah's face as she then turns to face him.

"Wow, we really slept," she says as she raises a hand to her face to yawn away the last bit of sleep.

"Yeah, we did," he declares back with a wide grin.

"I didn't wake once either," she admits with a loving smile.

"Me neither until about twenty minutes ago," he responds as he continues to grin.

"And we slept in our evening wear too," she says with a wry smile.

"Yeah," he chuckles.

"What time did we get back?" she asks inquisitively.

"Uhm..." he pauses briefly. "Twelve? Or One? I'm not sure."

"Me neither," she responds and they then enter into a brief silence as they gaze at each other from where they are laying together on their bed.

Chuck eventually breaks the silence once more, "Are you ready for breakfast?" he asks.

She nods before responding, "Uh-huh. But I'm making it today."

"Sarah..." he attempts to protest but she moves her left hand up to place her index finger onto his lips to quieten his protests.

"You made it yesterday. So I'm making it today. Now get up," she declares as she proceeds to stand up and she takes his hand to pull him up and they depart for their kitchen together…

 _x-x-x-x-x-x_

"Chuck, I think we should make our newfound sleeping arrangement more permanent," Sarah says as she glances at Chuck who is seated on a stool facing into the kitchen at her from where she is stood.

"I'll agree to it if you agree to look over the support group information with me that your consultant provided you with," he responds as he takes another mouthful of bacon and egg that Sarah has just made him.

"That's not fair," she protests in response to him saying he'll only give her something she wants, in exchange for something that he wants.

"Everything is fair in love and war, Sarah," he jokes causing her to grin.

"Just shut up and eat your breakfast," she responds cutely, as she raises a strawberry up to her mouth to bite on it, causing a memory to flash right before her eyes once more...

 **~~~ Chuck and Sarah were inside a kitchen in a suburban home. There was a dog also present with them.**

 **Sarah was cooking and Chuck was seated around the table.**

" **Hold on, are you enjoying this whole _Martha Stewart_ thing?" he asks.**

 **She doesn't respond but looks cutely at him instead.**

" **I can't believe it! Please tell me you're not going soft on me," he says.**

" **Just shut up and eat your breakfast," she responds.**

" **You better be careful, Sarah. One day you might actually turn into a real girl," he responds ~~~**

Sarah immediately begins to choke on the strawberry she had formerly placed into her mouth on that memory flashing before her mind.

And on seeing Sarah in distress, Chuck is instantly off his stool as he rushes into the kitchen.

"Sarah!" he says panickingly as he watches Sarah try to recover from almost choking to death on the strawberry caused by her memory.

"I've said shut up and eat your breakfast to you before, haven't I?" she asks him mid cough as she attempts to restore her airways back to normalcy.

"Huh?" he responds dumbfounded. "Uh… I can't remember."

Sarah shakes her head disapprovingly before responding, "Some help you are."

"Sarah, I'm sorry. We've had thousands of memories together," he informs her and she smiles faintly in acceptance.

"What about a suburb? Have we lived in a suburb together? Also, I think there was a dog with us?" she asks.

She then watches as her husband stands in puzzlement in their kitchen for a brief moment before his brain seems to click like a lightbulb.

"Oh, yeah! When we were living in the suburbs!"

Sarah quirks her eyebrows. "We lived in the suburbs together?" she asks.

"Only undercover," he admits. "So yes, you have said that to me before. It was about four years ago. We were sent undercover to root out a rogue sleeper cell in the area. Instantly, we find bugs in the house which are linked to Fulcrum. Anyway, things become VERY dangerous for us and we all manage to get ourselves captured by Fulcrum who were all over the suburbs. Casey then saves the day and I protect your brain from exploding to a faulty intersect and we just about leave in one piece by the skin of our teeth."

"Wow!" Sarah responds in amazement.

"Yeah," he agrees with a chuckle…

 _x-x-x-x-x-x-x_

Chuck and Sarah are eating dinner together inside their home and they are about to talk about the support group that Sarah's consultant had informed the pair about a few days ago. It had taken Chuck most of the day just to convince Sarah to entertain the possibility of this conversation but she had finally relented and agreed to do so.

"Sarah, I know that you're extremely apprehensive about this. But I can't even begin to describe how proud and ecstatic I will be with you if you do it," he declares before taking another mouthful of food.

"Ecstatic enough to have sex?" she quips with a wide smirk and satisfactorily watches as Chuck starts to choke on his food just as she had done much earlier in the day.

"Crikey! Sarah, are you trying to kill me?! I almost choked on my food!" Chuck complains as he coughs.

Sarah laughs sweetly. "Your reaction alone was worth it. For that alone, I'll agree to do it!"

She watches him shake his head disapprovingly at her causing her to smirk.

"You're evil sometimes, Sarah, you know that right?" he says playfully causing Sarah's smug facial expressions to remain.

"Well it's too late now. You've already married me," she laughs whilst feeling deeply content with herself.

"That's true. I suppose it's too late for me to flee to Mars or Jupiter away from you," he responds with a wide, affectionate grin.

"Yes, way too late!" she quips back.

"So we'll give them a ring tomorrow?" he then suggests.

She nods. "Yeah, that's fine. But Chuck, you'd better come with me," she says anxiously and watches as he smiles at her.

"Sarah, nothing is more important to me in my life than you. Of course I'm coming with you and just try and stop me," he declares with conviction causing Sarah to return his adoring smile.

"Do you want to do anything together after dinner?" he then asks.

Sarah ponders his question for a moment as she tries to think of what they used to do together. "I'm not sure. What would we usually do?" she then asks.

"Mostly just watch a movie," he admits.

She smiles at him once more before responding, "That sounds nice."

"Great!" he responds immediately...

 _x-x-x-x-x-x-x_

Chuck and Sarah have just sat down on the sofa to watch a movie together. They take a few minutes scrolling through the catalogue of movies available before settling on _The Bodyguard_ starring _Whitney Houston_ and _Kevin Costner_. The movie then begins, and Sarah cozies into the sofa whilst laying out flat and she puts her legs over Chuck's thighs from where he is sitting. They occasionally glance adoringly at each other throughout the movie…

The movie that Chuck and Sarah have just watched has now finished and Sarah's position is still unchanged as she lays flat out on the sofa with her legs resting on his thighs.

"Wow, she has a great voice," Sarah declares in amazement to Chuck and she watches him nod his head.

"She does," he agrees. "And Kevin Costner is a legend."

"Yeah, he's really good," she admits as she starts to think about the movie she has just watched with Chuck once more.

"She's actually deceased now, Sarah," Chuck then informs her causing her to gasp in shock.

"Wow! What happened?" she asks.

"She accidentally drowned in the bath. It was all over the news. She'd taken a lot of illicit drugs that obviously contributed to it," he informs his wife's suppressed memory.

"Wow... Such wasted potential," Sarah responds glumly.

"Yeah..." he sighs.

"I really enjoyed the movie though, Chuck. Have we seen it before?" she then asks.

"Once I think. But it's always a classic," responds and she nods her head.

"Yeah it is," she admits.

"I'm just gonna make a few phonecalls now so you can use the bathroom first."

She nods her head and smiles warmly at him before responding, "Thank you."

Sarah then stands up, as she heads into their bedroom and she collects a lingerie set before entering the bathroom and undressing herself as she steps into the shower...

 **A short while later**

Sarah has now finished with her pre-bed routine and is now in bed as Chuck walks into the bedroom. She looks up to smile warmly at him which he returns before he declares ,"All done."

"Great. Then let's go to sleep," she responds.

She then watches him nod as he responds, "Yeah."

On receiving the cue, she opens the covers for him so he can join her in bed and she watches as his eyes fix onto what she is wearing and he starts to choke causing her to immediately snicker at his fluster.

"Chuck, you've seen me like this lots of times. I don't need my memory to know that," she declares.

He nods. "Yeah, and each time you become a billion times more beautiful than the last," he declares causing her to beam him a loving smile as she giggles for the briefest of seconds.

She then watches as he climbs into bed with her and he throws his side of the duvet over him. On him completing said actions, she leans into him as she connects her lips together with his own as she attempts to instigate intimacy between themselves once more tonight. She hasn't forgot their agreement of a week's pause before resuming strong intimacy with each other once more. But he may have changed his mind since last night and she won't know that until she tries.

They continue to kiss for the next minute until Chuck begins to back himself away from Sarah ever so slightly.

"I'm still not ready, Sarah," he admits with a warm smile.

She nods acceptingly before responding, "Ok, Chuck."

Sarah then turns away from him and once more like the previous night she back herself into him as she slept extremely comfortably last night and strongly desires the same position they slept in once more.

"Goodnight, Chuck," Sarah says on finishing her repositioning.

"Goodnight, Sarah," he responds into her hair as the husband and wife quickly fall into a peaceful sleep once more...

* * *

 **Eight days since the beach**

 **Los Angeles**

 **7:00 P** **M**

Chuck and Sarah have just arrived outside of a small medical facility. This particular building is to play host to a group of memory loss sufferers this evening. It's a fairly large one story building. It had all came about earlier this morning when Chuck after further persuading and encouragement to Sarah had rang to see if they could both attend a group at the next available date after he had stated her condition. The clerk he had spoken to had told him that there was in fact a session this very same day and they would both be most welcome to attend and here they are as they just depart from Sarah's Lotus together. Sarah is still feeling very apprehensive about it and Chuck senses it as he provides further encouragement to her.

"Sarah, it will be fine. You've survived knife fights, gunfights and just about every dangerous situation known to man. We're just going in there with open minds. It may not be for you. And if it's not, then it's completely fine and we can leave right away and I won't even try to stop you. You don't have to stay and you certainly don't have to speak. I wouldn't want you to do that your first time anyway," he says reassuringly and she smiles anxiously at him.

"So are you ready then?" he then asks her.

"As I'll ever be," she responds and he grins affectionately before they depart the car park and head towards the facility.

On arriving at the main entrance, there is an inspirational notice above the entrance which states: **To survive memory loss, find something you love to do...**

The husband and wife pause in thought for a moment on reading the inspirational message, before Chuck moves to open the door for his wife and he holds it open for her as she enters inside with him following suit after her. On arriving inside the building, they walk over to the welcoming area and encounter a middle aged lady behind a desk.

"Good evening," she says warmly to the young couple.

"Hi," Chuck and Sarah reply to the receptionist.

"Are you here for the group this evening?" the receptionist asks.

"We are. My lovely wife is experiencing memory loss at the moment. She had an accident at work. We saw a consultant and he suggested that she or we can potentially benefit from being here. I love and care about her so much so that I persuaded and convinced her to come here," Chuck declares as he looks and smiles adoringly at Sarah and he takes her hand briefly and she gives him a loving smile back.

"Most people are anxious and nervous the first time but I don't think I've met anybody that has said that it hasn't helped them in some way. Take a seat and you will all be called in together when it begins at 7:15," the receptionist informs Chuck and Sarah and they both nod their heads in acceptance.

"Ok, thank you," Chuck then replies whilst Sarah just smiles warmly at the receptionist.

Chuck and Sarah then move to take a seat as they await the memory loss support group to begin...

 **A few minutes later**

Chuck and Sarah are still seated together waiting for tonight's group to begin when they notice activity and a middle aged man with grey hair, glasses and is smartly dressed appears from out of doorway and he walks over to the vicinity of where fifteen people including Chuck and Sarah are all gathered.

"Ok, if you would all like to follow me," he says softly with a warm smile.

The group all then stand and follow the man through the door he had came from and they continue on for a little while longer until then entering another door. Chuck and Sarah then enter into the room and they note a group of around twenty chairs all placed in a circle.

The group then take a seat and the man with glasses and grey hair waits until everybody has seated before beginning to speak to the group.

"I'm Kevin. I see a lot of new faces here," he pauses to look at all of the new faces including Chuck and Sarah and he smiles at everybody present. "Welcome. For our regulars who have been here before, as you all know, we don't force anybody to speak here. Some people benefit more from these kind of support groups when they don't speak at all. You are not here because it is mandatory for you to attend. Instead, you are all here to learn more about your condition, or your loved ones condition and you aren't forced into speaking so please do not feel pressured into doing so tonight."

The group all nod their heads at Kevin's introduction.

"So then, is there anybody who would like to speak? Maybe one of our regulars?" Kevin asks as he glances around the group and Chuck and Sarah watch as a middle aged lady sat in the circle raises her hand.

"Great. I will now pass the stage over to Linda," Kevin responds on receiving the cue that somebody wants to speak to the group.

"Thank you Kevin. I think this is our tenth?" she pauses to look at a man sat next to her and Chuck and Sarah watch him nod his head in agreement. "group meeting here. I didn't want to come at first but my husband made me," she pauses once more, and Chuck and Sarah use the pause to break from looking at Linda to look at each other instead with wry smiles because their situation is the exact same.

"I am fifty five years young," she pauses again with a loving smile as the group chuckles at her humour "and I have early stage dementia. It really sucks at times. I am still in denial about how much it is effecting me. I have difficulty concentrating for a prolonged period of time and I'm quite forgetful of recent events and I have difficulties with finance and visiting new places. Socialising is quite difficult and I have begun to break away from my friends. What scares me most of all is forgetting who my husband is..." she pauses to make affectionate eye contact with her husband sat next to her and Chuck and Sarah's heartstrings pull on hearing the lady's revelations especially the final part because that exact same situation is playing out in their own relationship right now. "We have been through so much together throughout our lives and each day I live in fear of waking up the next day and forgetting who he is..."

 **A few minutes later**

"Eric, would you like to speak?" Kevin suggests as he glances in the direction of a middle aged man.

Chuck and Sarah watch as the man nods his head.

"Thank you, Kevin. I was involved in a serious car crash three years ago and suffered significant brain damage in addition to losing my arm," he pauses, to show the location of where his arm used to be causing the mood inside of the group to turn a little sombre as Chuck and Sarah begin to feel strong empathy towards the gentleman. "not being able to remember things such as my daughter's wedding is extremely hard to come to terms with but I won't let it defeat me. If we stop living our lives and wail in our grief and misery then our condition takes over our life to the point that we no longer live it. You can't let it defeat you. You have to find something to do in your life that you love and distract yourself from your problems! I like to go on long walks, I find it really does help me and lessens my memory loss to the point where it no longer bothers me..."

 **A short while later**

The one hour group session is now coming to an end. In addition to Linda and Eric, two others had chosen to speak. One of the other speakers was a wife who had opened herself up to the group and had stated that her husband is in the advanced stages of Alzheimer's disease. His symptoms ranged from forgetting the names of close family members to having little memory of recent and past events in their life. The wife had also heartbrokenly explained that her husband has difficulty counting down from ten in addition to numerous other difficulties that he faces day to day.

"Well, thank you for all coming here today. And for the new faces I see, I hope that hearing the thoughts of others suffering the same situation as yourselves has made you feel a bit better that you're not alone. Maybe you will have learned some coping mechanisms and ideas on how to manage your condition. I will be holding another group in three days time and you are all most welcome to return to be here with us. There is no limit to how often you can come here. You can also return intermittently and you don't have to attend every session. Please do stay for refreshment and conversation if you so choose but that is about all for today's session and if I don't see you in the lobby for tea and biscuits then I look forward to seeing some of you once more in a few days time."

On Kevin closing down the meeting, the group then begin to disperse and Chuck and Sarah wait around for a moment as they continue to sit next to each other. On now being alone in the circle, Chuck smiles at Sarah, which she returns to him in kind.

"I'm so proud of you," he declares affectionately with a wide grin.

She laughs briefly before admitting, "I didn't even speak."

She watches him shake his head. "Doesn't matter. I didn't even think you would come so you have already done a hundred times more than I expected."

"I didn't think I would either," she admits with her continued loving smile.

"Are you glad you did, though?" he asks.

She nods. "Uh-huh. I really do think it has helped me," she admits enthusiastically.

On hearing her words, he sports her a huge Bartowski grin. "I'm sure there are hundreds of these groups occurring all across the country."

"Oh I'm sure," she agrees.

"Do you want to go and grab some refreshment?" he then asks.

She nods. "Sure," she says as she smiles warmly at him once more.

They then stand up and depart from the room they have been inside for the past hour as they then head out into the lobby towards a group of around ten people.

On arriving, they are welcomed by the others who have just been present in the same group. They are approached by Linda and her husband who had attended with her.

"Hi," Linda says warmly to the young couple.

"Hey. I'm Chuck," Chuck says.

Linda smiles before responding, "Hi, Chuck. It's nice to meet you," as the two then move to embrace to formally greet each other. On them parting from the greeting, Chuck stands aside and Linda gazes at Sarah.

"Sarah," she responds.

"Hi, Sarah. It's lovely to meet you too," Linda then responds and likewise, she moves to embrace Sarah.

On the two women parting, Linda then begins to introduce her husband. "This is my husband, Robert," she says to Chuck and Sarah.

"Hi, Robert," Chuck says warmly and he moves to shake the older man's hand.

"Hi Robert," Sarah also says and she moves to embrace the older man to greet him.

"It's lovely to meet you both," Robert says and the group of four all smile at each other.

"Would you both like some tea?" Linda then offers.

Chuck glances at Sarah and she nods and smiles affectionately at him.

"Yes please. Thank you," Chuck then responds.

Chuck and Sarah are then handed some tea and a biscuit as the group begin to converse with each other after their meeting.

"My husband won't approve of my meddling, but may I ask why you both are here? You both look so lovely, and so young."

On hearing Linda's declarations and her question, the young couple smile at her. "I had an accident at work. I've lost my memories of about the past five years," Sarah then admits.

"Oh dear. I'm so sorry to hear that, Sarah," Linda says sincerely.

"Thank you," Sarah responds with a smile.

"And is this your?" Linda then asks.

"Husband," Sarah finishes. "you know, I didn't really want to come here just like you. But he kind of convinced me."

The group of four all smile at each other once more.

"Oh? And are you happy that you have now?" Linda asks.

Sarah nods her head before responding, "Yes," as she smiles once more and rotates her gaze between Chuck, Linda and Robert but mostly at Chuck.

"Your speech was very good," Chuck then says.

"Thank you," Linda responds with a loving smile.

Chuck and Sarah are then introduced to the rest of the group by Linda and Robert and they make some small talk for ten minutes before they then begin to depart the facility to head for dinner...

* * *

Chuck and Sarah have just arrived back at their apartment after eating dinner together.

"Linda was so nice," Sarah declares to Chuck on them arriving inside their apartment.

Chuck nods his head. "Yea, she was and her husband is a real gentleman too," he responds.

Sarah nods. "Yeah. He reminds me a lot of you," she declares affectionately and they share a loving smile together.

"I feel so bad for Eric. It must be horrible to forget all of the things that he did," Chuck then says with a sad smile causing Sarah to do the same.

"Yeah and poor old Bert. To have Alzheimer's that advanced. I feel so bad for his wife," Sarah declares sympathetically.

"Yeah…" Chuck agrees with a long sigh.

"Chuck, thank you so much for making me attend tonight. I feel a little better about my own memory loss for seeing people with much worse problems coping with their situation."

Chuck smiles adoringly once more as he takes Sarah's hand into his own.

"Sarah, you're welcome. Does that mean you'll be going back to the next one?" he asks with his continued smile.

She nods whilst giving him an adoring smile of her own. "Yeah, if you'll come with me."

"Sarah, I'd come to hell with you if you requested it of me," he declares humorously causing Sarah to giggle approvingly, before moving into his person to wrap her arms around his neck and she connects his lips with her own.

On parting the kiss a minute later and restoring her breath to an acceptable level to talk coherently, she begins to talk, "Before you ask what it was for, it's for coming with me and your former comment to me."

She watches as a mischievous look forms on his face before he responds, "I guess I should make more comments like that then. If you're going to kiss me like you just did."

She giggles briefly and gives him a loving smile once more before responding, "Sure, you can. But clothes will be coming off us both if you do."

She watches as he takes a moment in consideration before responding, "clothes will be coming off in a minute anyway. Seeing as it now appears to be bedtime," he says as he checks his watch.

"Touche," she replies with a loving smile.

"I guess I'll see you tomorrow then," he then says with a straight face and she does an immediate double take as she begins to frown.

 _I thought we were past this. What's caused him to be on eggshells around me again?_

"I'm just kidding!" he then quickly says as he starts to laugh deeply causing her to breathe out a huge sigh of relief and she distastefully swats his chest with her hand for his winding her up.

"You had better be joking! You agreed to make our sleeping arrangement permanent in exchange for me even agreeing to consider the support group alone, and with me now going to the actual meeting, then I'd say that you are heavily in my debt buster," she declares with a smirk.

He nods his head. "True, true… So how about a massage? Will that settle the debt?" he asks as he winks his eyebrows at her.

It takes her a quarter of a second to respond. "Deal!" she quickly says before he can change his mind.

"Ok, great! I'll just go and grab the stuff and then I'll meet you in the bedroom. Ok?" he asks.

She nods before responding, "Ok."

They smile at each other a final time before he responds, "Super! See you soon!" as he then departs and Sarah heads to their bedroom...

* * *

 **A short while later**

Sarah is now almost naked save from just her panties and she is under a sheet and is lazing into a pillow in the middle of their bed in their bedroom. The last time this was attempted, there was a knife hidden under a pillow. This time? No knife, just a wife lazing into the pillow and being scrumptiously massaged by her husband's magical hands.

"Chuck?" she asks from where she is laying.

"Yes, honey?" he replies as he continues to massage her back from where he is hovering over her.

"I was just thinking about what Quinn did to me. I'm sorry again, by the way," she responds as she continues to relax into the mattress.

"Honey, it wasn't your fault," he says and he pauses as she then feels him kiss the top of her head causing her to shiver at his touch.

"I'm just glad you're back here with me," he then declares and she smiles into the pillow on hearing his words.

"Me too," she responds into the pillow as he starts to massage her again once more.

"You won't object to me cracking your neck this time I take it?" he asks as his hands continue to massage her upper back.

"Not at all, please do," she invites him.

"Ok," he responds and there is a brief pause as his hands leave her upper back until she feels them connect with her neck. He then begins to do said action and Sarah sighs pleasurably into the pillow...

 **A few minutes later**

Chuck has now finished giving Sarah probably one of the best massages in her life. She is still in the exact position but Chuck has just climbed off of her. He then appears just infront of her and they smile affectionately at each other.

"Chuck, that was lovely. Thank you," she declares.

"You're welcome. You've given me numerous too," he informs her.

"Then I guess it's my turn next," she then says.

"I guess it is," he replies and pauses briefly to grin at her. "I'll leave you to dress now?"

She shakes her her no before responding, "There's no point. I'll just go straight to shower and then we'll head to bed?"

She watches him nod before he responds, "Ok. I'll wait in the lounge. Just call me when you're done so I can then shower too.

She smiles lovingly once more before responding, "Ok, Chuck…"

 **A short while later**

Both Chuck and Sarah have now finished their pre-bed routines and they have just climbed into bed together for the third night running.

"I have been looking forward to this most all day," she declares.

She watches him chuckle briefly before he responds, "Me too."

Sarah then moves into him once more, in another attempt at instigating sexual intercourse with him tonight. They begin to passionately kiss and he allows her hands to roam up and down him. Sarah then breaks the kiss, and she opens her eyes to look at him. They smile affectionately at each other as she then asks, "Are you ready?"

She watches him shake his head sympathetically no and she sighs for a long moment to restore her composure.

"Ok, Chuck, we'll continue going at your pace as agreed. But the week agreed is quickly closing," she finishes with a smirk.

"I know... Sarah, how about this? How about we both say what we are comfortable with here and now?" he says to her.

She smiles on hearing his question before responding, "I'm open to it."

"Ok, I'll go first?" he asks.

She nods her head in confirmation.

"Are you comfortable enough to share the same toothbrush?" he then asks.

She smirks before responding, "Probably not yet. Ok, my turn. Hmm... Being in the bathroom at the same time?"

"I'm fine with that. How about you?" he asks.

"I'm not sure. I wouldn't know until I tried it," she admits and they smile at each other again.

"Confessing my undying love to you whenever I feel the need to?" he asks.

"I'm not sure," she responds as yet another smile seeps through her lips.

"I love you," he declares immediately causing a titanic smile to form on Sarah's face.

"So, how was that?" he asks.

"I'm sure I can live with it," she declares affectionately as the young couple gaze intimately at each other for a long moment.

"Goodnight, Sarah," he then says softly.

"Goodnight, Chuck," she responds in the same tone, before the reconciling couple take up their new favorite sleeping position once more before sleep overtakes the young married couple...

End of Chapter

 **AN3** I'm not sure what the next chapter will contain yet so I can't give teasers. It _will_ contain Chuck and Sarah's second trip to the support group, though. And whilst they are there, Linda suggests something to Sarah that could potentially allow her to find something to do with her life.

I hope you enjoyed today's chapter and please review it with your thoughts :)


	10. Chapter 10

**AN1** Warning to my readers that this story is no longer T rated. It will now contain strong intimate scenes beginning this very same chapter. I have strongly debated this back and forth but I have decided that I just don't feel comfortable in cutting away once a sex scene occurs between Chuck and Sarah in this fiction because this story is about them recapturing their love and some of that will undoubtedly come when they have sex together. So here is the warning: I won't be cutting away from any scene that contains sex and subsequently, this fiction will now contain around ten or more detailed sexual scenes.

 **AN2** I didn't realize the significance of what nine days since the beach means in the world of All Roads Lead Back Home. In All Roads, nine days marks one week since Sarah came back to Chuck. So for this reason, this entire chapter is going to be devoted to their new-found anniversary and there won't be a second support group session taking place this chapter. That will take place next chapter.

* * *

 **All Roads Lead Back Home**

 **Chapter Ten**

* * *

 **Nine days since the beach**

Today marks one week since Sarah returned to Chuck after having stayed with her mother for a few days to figure how out she felt about Chuck, their marriage and their life that they have been living together for five years. It is still going to take some time for them to reach pre Nicholas Quinn levels in their relationship. But Sarah now knows beyond all doubt that they are well on the road to recovery. This man that she is waking up in the arms of loves her unconditionally, of that her conviction is absolute. And a huge part of her feels content and secure in the arms of a man who worships her. Though there are some doubts and fears still remaining. Chuck is a no holds barred kind of guy. He leaves nothing on the table. What Sarah can see from her husband, comes directly from his heart and soul and he pulls no punches in his expressing of love towards her. Is it a bit too powerful and intense for her sometimes? Quite possibly. But it's better than being alone as _the_ Enforcer, as she traversed on from one ugly mission to the next.

Sarah begins to back into Chuck slightly from where they are resting together to let him know she is awake and he responds instantly as she feels him move his hand up until it lands and rests firmly onto her upper abdomen, just below her chest.

She pauses in shock briefly, at the intimate contact he has just made with her, before a smile seeps through her lips and she moves to adjust and place her right hand over his own that is now resting on her upper abdomen.

 _This feels right_

"Good morning," she greets him with her continued smile.

"Good morning, Sarah," he responds as they both begin to fidget and they move their bodies slightly, before finishing right back in the same position like two spoons made for each other. Sarah hasn't spooned with many guys before in her life. Just one, actually. And it was a guy she had met at the CIA academy for a bit of fun. But this isn't fun what she is doing with her husband right now. This is love.

"Do you know what today is?" Sarah asks as a loving smile forms.

"No?" he whispers back into her hair.

"Today marks one week since I came back to you," Sarah declares and she immediately feels his hand placed on her abdomen move in the direction of her heart as her own hand follows his until they land at their new destination together.

"Wow, I didn't realize," he admits as she hears him laugh a suppressed laugh into her hair.

Sarah then begins to turn to face him, though rather reluctantly because of how comfortable she felt in her former position against him with his hand placed over and on her. On turning, and being just inches away from him, she meets his gaze and a sad smile forms as she declares, "I did. It's the only anniversary that I have of us."

She watches as he smiles sympathetically at her, and he moves his hand that had formerly been firmly placed on her body up to her face. She closes her eyes briefly, on feeling him softly stroking her cheek, before opening her eyes to gaze at him once more.

"We should do something tonight then," he suggests to her with a loving grin.

"Are you asking me out on a second, second date, Chuck Bartowski?" she asks flirtatiously.

She watches him grin before he responds, "I do believe that I am, Sarah Lisa Bartowski."

This is the first time he has called her by her official name since her memory had been suppressed and she has to admit, former deadly spy or not, it feels nothing short of amazing as a wide, affectionate grin forms on her face.

"Then you have yourself a date," she declares and she watches him grin affectionately at her once more.

She then watches him begin to move his head in motion towards her, and she quickly meets him halfway on their bed as they connect their lips together and she closes her eyes as she runs her hand up his body until landing on his neck as she begins to caress his masculinity figure. She opens her eyes briefly, and she watches as he does the same and she stares into his eyes and she smiles at him as they close their eyes again and she attempts to ram her tongue down his throat but he blocks entry with his own and they continue to passionately kiss each other. After a long moment, Sarah is forced to break it as she suddenly has a desperate need for air and she reluctantly detaches her lips from his own as she draws in a huge breath of air and she opens her eyes as a wide smile forms once more.

"Mmm," Sarah moans in delight to him as that was certainly the most passionate kiss that she has shared with him since what Quinn did to them both though she's sure it's up there with some of the ones before Quinn too.

"Mmm, yourself," he retorts and she laughs a suppressed laugh as her hand continues to stroke and caress his neck.

"I hope you know I now expect lots more of that tonight," she responds to him with her continued smile as she continues to caress his neck.

"Oh I can assure you there will be lots more of that tonight," he retorts and she watches as he winks his eyebrows causing her to giggle approvingly at his actions and his words to her...

* * *

 **A short while later**

Chuck and Sarah have finished eating breakfast in their apartment together and they have also changed into their day wear.

"Sarah, I'm just going to head out for a moment. I won't be long," he declares and she nods as a loving smile forms on her face.

"Ok," she responds as she continues her smile.

"Aren't you going to ask why or where?" he responds.

Sarah shakes her head no as she laughs before responding, "No, Chuck. You are entitled to go out."

He then laughs as a wide grin forms on his face.

"Though you now have me curious as to why," Sarah states.

He laughs once more before responding, "I can't tell you. It's a surprise!"

Sarah shakes her head in disgust at his teasing. "Oh you tease! You get me all curious and then you do that to me!" she responds as she continues to shake her head in disapproval.

He laughs once more before responding, "I'm sorry. I can't help myself."

"You're lucky I need you for the date tonight. And this surprise had better be a good one, or else your ass is mine!" Sarah states laughingly as she points her finger at him...

 **A short while later**

Chuck has just arrived back at his shared apartment with his wife. His surprise for Sarah consisted of a visit to a florist, and in his right hand, he is armed with a large bouquet of gardenias. Inserting his key into the lock of the door of their apartment, he then enters as he calls out, "Sarah?" in a voice loud enough for her to hear him wherever she may be.

"I'm in the bedroom!" she calls back out to him and he smiles as he makes his way through their apartment until arriving in the hallway a few seconds later. He then closes the distance until arriving at the doorway of their bedroom as he then enters into the room and his gaze connects onto his wife.

"Happy anniversary," he declares with a wide grin and he watches as she rotates her gaze between him and the flowers in his hand and he watches as a beaming, affectionate smile forms on her face as she stands up from where she was sitting on the bed and she moves into his proximity.

"These are for you. I heard they are your favorite," he jokes and she giggles sweetly at him.

Sarah then takes the flowers out of his hand and he watches her turn from him and he watches her delicately place them down on their bed before turning back to face him once more.

He grins at her as his wife then steps into his proximity once more and she moves her hands up to either side of where his neck meets his face and he instinctively places his hands onto both sides of her waist to hold her in place and she closes the distance between their faces to connect her lips together with his own.

He smiles at her inside of the kiss as he then closes his eyes and gets lost in the touch and the affection of his wife. The reconciling couple remain locked like this for a long moment as they continue to kiss with neither of the two having any intentions to stop until he begins to feel his wife's right hand travelling south down his body and he opens one eye to glance at her and he sees her beautiful, alluring sapphire orbs gazing intently at him. They continue to gaze at each other and their lips continue to remain locked together and he continues to feel her hand lower until arriving at his crotch. He is aroused for her, and he always will be, but he is still not ready for that level of intimacy yet even though one part of his body is strongly arguing and making a case against that statement. Maybe tonight, if their date is successful…

Reluctantly, he removes his left hand from holding onto her waist and he moves his hand in-between their bodies to take hold of her own that is placed at his crotch and he shakes his head no sympathetically.

He watches her nod, before she then proceeds to sigh and a sympathetic smile forms on his face on seeing her frustrations.

"Thank you for the flowers," she says and his faint smile reforms into a wide, trademark loving grin instead.

"Thank you for the kiss," he responds with his continued grin and he watches as a loving smile forms on the face of his wife…

* * *

 **Later that day**

Chuck has just returned from a busy day of working out his cyber-security plans for Carmichael Industries. It is very hard work and he misses and yearns for Sarah's input into the business because it was her idea to begin with. Though he totally understands Sarah's position in that she has no desire to spy any more after what it has done to her. He hopes that she can find something to do with her life soon though, because he loves and idolizes her and it's hurting him to see that she doesn't seem to have much purpose or goals in her life right now. It must be very hard and lonely for her to go from having a career albeit a very dangerous one, to not having much and almost nothing that she can remember of her life that she is now living. Chuck is sure that she will find something to do that she can grow to love. Because she is Sarah, and Sarah can do anything…

Chuck then enters into his apartment. He doesn't need to call her because she is seated at their dining table and she is presently using a tablet device. His gaze connects onto her and he smiles adoringly at her, and he watches her give a loving glance of her own back at him.

"Hi, honey," he declares affectionately as he walks towards her.

"Hi," she responds warmly and she continues her loving smile at him

Chuck then moves to sit opposite her at their dining table.

"whatcha doing?" he asks.

He watches her smile faintly at him before responding, "Just looking for something to do with my life."

Chuck returns her faint smile before asking, "Do you need help?"

He watches her shake her head no before responding, "I'll be ok, Chuck. I hope I find something soon. I'm getting very bored staying at home. I'm definitely not a stay at home kind of girl."

Chuck smiles sympathetically at his wife. "I know you're not. But you'll find something," he states confidently.

"How are you so sure?" she asks him as they continue to gaze at each other from where they're seated.

"Because you're Sarah and because I love and believe in you more than I have ever believed in anybody," he declares powerfully and he watches as an adoring smile forms on her face on hearing his declarations

"Enough moping anyway. Now that you're home, I want to enjoy myself," she responds to him with her continued smile and he meets her smile with a grin of his own.

"Me too, about that," Chuck starts and waits for Sarah to inquire before continuing.

"Yeah?" she asks as they continue to gaze at each other.

"I've made a reservation for us tonight," he informs her with his continued loving smile and he watches her smile back.

"What's it like?" she then asks him.

Chuck grimaces as he gazes at his wife once more. "I'm gonna be honest. It's a lot more luxurious than Morgan's recommendation the other day," he admits to her.

"Chuck," she attempts to protest.

But he interrupts, "Sarah, like you said this morning, it's our anniversary."

He watches as she smiles at him once more. "Fair enough, you've convinced me. If we can't celebrate that, then what can we?" she asks and he furiously nods his head.

"Exactly," he then declares with his continued grin. "Though it's a little far away. So we may need to drive tonight."

"Chuck, it's ok," she says reassuringly. "I can still have two glasses of wine and that's plenty and more than enough anyway and you can still drink as much as you want,"

"Are you kidding me?" he asks as he interrupts and shakes his head at her.

"Chuck, you don't need to stop having a good time just because of me," she declares sincerely.

"Sarah, I don't need alcohol to have a good time all I need is you," he declares with an affectionate smile and she giggles sweetly on hearing his declaration.

"Should I get ready in Morgan's again?" he then asks.

He watches her shake her head no before she responds, "No Chuck, it's ok."

Chuck nods before asking, "Are you sure?"

"Mh-hmm," she responds and he watches her nod.

"Ok," he replies.

"Actually, why don't you come and help me decide what to wear?" she suggests.

"Sarah, you can wear whatever you want," he responds sincerely.

"Chuck, I'm wearing it for you. We're not naive and we're adults. A date is exactly that, a date, and I can't remember what you like to see me in," she admits.

Chuck smiles affectionately at his wife once more. "Sarah, I don't care if your chosen attire is a bin-bag, you will still be out of this world," he declares causing her to instantly begin to giggle once more in happiness.

"Chuck, these comments are so overpowering," she admits as they continue to gaze at each other.

"I'm sorry if they're too intense," he responds apologetically.

She shakes her head and smiles warmly. "Chuck, it's not that they're intense. It's just every time you make one, I want to race up out of the chair, rush to you, straddle you and take you here and now," she finishes as she begins to laugh sweetly and Chuck grins wickedly at his wife as he emits a nervous ramble and he gets a little flustered.

"Actually, I think you should come and help me look for one right now before it actually happens," she suggests and he furiously nods his head as they both move to stand up.

"Good idea," he responds as he takes her hand and she pulls away at his hand. "Who's your mama?"

On hearing his outburst, he watches as she turns to look behind herself and at him as she gazes affectionately at him.

Arriving at their bedroom together a short moment later, Sarah leads Chuck into their bedroom and they head over to the wardrobe. Sarah then lets go of his hand and he watches as she opens the wardrobe and he stands behind her from where his wife is bent over in front of him and his glance looks fondly at all of her outfits as he remembers numerous memories for each one that his wife is taking hold of.

"Well help me pick then," she says as she glances behind her to look at him once more.

"Sarah, I like all of them, honestly," he declares and he watches her turn to smile at him once more.

He then watches as she takes hold of a salmon coloured formal dress and he watches as she brings it to her body and models it out to him.

"Oh god, the salmon dress!" Chuck declares as he thinks back to that mission more than four years ago when Bryce Larkin resurfaced and he was the lousy waiter and had to watch Bryce all over his wife who he had already fallen deeply for.

He then watches as a look of puzzlement and confusion appears on his wife's face exactly as he seen when they went out on their date a few days ago when she had a memory.

"Sarah, are you ok?" he asks in a concerned tone and what happens next, shocks and confuses him as his wife stands up, grabs him and pushes him into a wall in their bedroom and he squeals nervously as she stands in his immediate proximity and she pins him against their wall with her hands.

"You have some explaining to do, Chuck," she declares into his face.

"Huh? Honey, what did I do?" he asks in puzzlement.

"Chuck, I spent so long getting ready into that dress I just showed you only for you to tell me that red or salmon wasn't your favorite colour. That's not a way to talk to your girlfriend," she states to him.

"That's all you remember?" he asks as he gazes at her from where she is pinning him against the wall.

He watches her nod before responding, "Yeah. Why? Was there more?"

Chuck coughs as he then nods his head. "That was actually the time when Bryce was staying inside your hotel room and I'd tried the Montgomery on you only for him to open the door and he said something like 'I was worried you'd fall for her', meaning you," he pauses to smile at her. "So that's why I said the salmon thing to you. To try and conceal to him how I felt about you."

He watches as she smiles at him. "So you did like how I looked then?"

"Sarah, red is arguably my favorite colour to be honest with you," he pauses to chuckle and she laughs along with him as her grip loosens on him to a more softer affectionate one instead of a hostile one. "My jaw dropped on seeing how breathtaking you were. There's only one other day that I have seen you as beautiful as that day," he declares.

"What day was that?" she asks as they continue to gaze at each other.

"Our wedding day," he responds as he beams her an affectionate smile.

He watches as she smiles back as she then releases him and she walks back to pick up the salmon coloured formal dress once more.

"You're not wearing that on our date tonight," Chuck states to her with conviction and he watches as she glances at him and she frowns.

"Why not?" she asks with a pout.

"Sarah, it's a ball dress and it's absolutely perfect and I would explode and I wouldn't be able to keep my hands off of you," he admits factually and she smirks in approval.

"Like that's a bad thing," she retorts with another smirk and she pauses. "And then I guess we'd better hurry up and go to a ball then because I want to see your face again when you see me in it."

"Yeah, maybe we'd better," he agrees and she giggles approvingly at him.

He then watches as she takes out a teal strapless dress from the wardrobe.

"Ok, what about this one?" she then asks as she puts the dress to her frame and models it out to him.

"Sarah, at the risk of repeating myself, I like and love you in everything, including this. I can't give you an answer on anything you show me because I like all of your wardrobe the same because it's the person that's wearing it who I like," he declares affectionately and he watches her beam a loving smile and she moves into his proximity to kiss his lips for a brief second before parting once more.

"This one it is then," she responds and he nods his head.

"Great," he then responds.

"I'll let you use the bathroom first," she states to him and he nods his head in acceptance.

"Thank you."

"What time is the reservation?" she then asks him.

He smiles before responding, "Eight."

He then watches as she takes his arm into her hand and adjusts it so that she can glance at his watch to obtain the time. "We have a few hours then," she declares on completing said action.

"Yeah," he responds. "I'll see you soon then, Sarah."

"Ok, Chuck" she agrees as she smiles at him a final time and they part ways to get ready for their date.

* * *

 **A short while later**

Chuck and Sarah have now almost finished getting ready. Chuck actually already is ready and he is wearing a maroon coloured dress shirt, black pants and smart going out shoes and he is once more wearing his Dior Sauvage cologne that Sarah loves and purchased herself for him and he is waiting out in the lounge for Sarah to finish and he is presently engaged in a telephone conversation with his mother who is ringing from Chicago.

"Mom, I'm fine, really," Chuck says reassuringly into the phone receiver.

"Are you sure you don't want me to come back from Chicago? I can if you wan,"

He interrupts his mother. "Mom, stay there and look after Clara. Sarah is back with me and that's all I need. We are heading out tonight because it's one week since she came back to me and things are going great, honestly," he says reassuringly.

"If you're sure," his mother responds.

"Mom, I am. Clara needs you more than I do. I only need Sarah. I don't need anything else. But I should probably go now because Sarah is almost ready," he responds.

"Ok, Chuck, then enjoy your night," his mother responds.

"Thank you, Mom, I will. I love you," he declares.

"I love you too," she responds.

"Bye,"

"Bye, Chuck."

Chuck then disconnects the call and he waits in pause for a short moment until Sarah appears in view and he gazes into her eyes and they smile affectionately at each other. His gaze then lowers down to her body and what a mistake that was! Chuck starts to survey his wife's body, as a lust builds up inside of him for her and his jaw drops, as it always does whenever his wife spends an extended period of time in getting ready. She is wearing the strapless teal dress that she had chosen earlier and a pair of matching heels and her hair is straightened and layered out perfectly and he continues his gaze at her as Sarah begins to edge closer towards him with an adoring smile on her face.

"If that's your reaction to this, then I can't wait to see your reaction to the salmon dress," she states to him and he grins at her as he continues to gaze in adoration and lust at his perfect and deadly angel.

"So, how do I look?" she asks playfully because she already knows the answer to that by the look in his eyes.

"I'm not sure, because my brain has died and is unable to give you a response," he states with a wide grin and he watches her laugh a suppressed chuckle.

"Oh? How peculiar, because the same thing seems to have happened with me," she retorts and they both smile affectionately and emit further suppressed laughter together.

"Playfulness aside, you grow more beautiful every single second. I'm running out of ways to declare how perfect you are actually," he declares to her with an affectionate grin and he watches as she stares intimately into his eyes.

"Chuck, what did I say at the dining table earlier?" she asks him.

Chuck spends a brief moment thinking back to what Sarah has just asked because he is finding it hard to concentrate because of the beautiful and perfect sight in front of his eyes. "Sorry," he responds with his continued loving grin and he watches her smile at him once more.

"You will be if you make one more overpowering comment," she responds to him with her continued smile and he immediately goes to speak causing her to reach her arm out as she puts her finger up to his lip, "Don't do it Chuck, or we'll forgo the date and we'll be having sex in less than 2.1 seconds."

Chuck winces approvingly on hearing his wife's words before responding, "Ooh, car reference! Nice, I like it!"

He watches a mischievous look form on his wife's face and he fondly awaits her response. "I'm not just beauty you know. I do have a brain," she says flirtatiously to him.

"Oh, I know. You're a billion times more than just beauty, honey," he declares immediately in response.

"Chuck... What did I just say?" she warns him as she looks at him lustfully.

"Sarah, I'm sorry. I can't help it," he admits with a nonchalant shrug of his shoulders.

"Then let's head on this date right now before I do something I wouldn't regret…" she declares as she quickly leaves their apartment and Chuck follows on after her...

* * *

 **A short while later**

Chuck and Sarah have just arrived at a five-star Italian restaurant in Los Angeles together. They enter into the restaurant arm in arm together and they then pause at the entrance as a look of amazement forms on the faces of both husband and wife.

"See, isn't this better than Morgan's recommendation?" Chuck asks and Sarah strongly nods her head.

"Ok, I concede," she admits and pauses as they share a loving smile together. "But it looks expensive."

"Sarah, you're worth it. Like you said, it's our anniversary," he declares with a loving grin and Sarah returns his facial gesture as she also moves her free arm and hand to move to affectionately rub her hand down Chuck's frame because of his words to her.

"Besides, it's _our_ money. So you're technically paying for it too," he adds further comment in jokingly causing Sarah to shake her head in mock disgust as she uses her free hand once more, only this time to swat his chest instead exactly where she had formerly caressed it.

"Oh, I see how it is," she responds and she pauses as they share a further affectionate smile before she adds further comment, "I don't think I've ever paid for a date before."

"Sarah, I'm worth it," he responds and he winks his eyebrows at her causing her to laugh a suppressed laugh.

"Oh, I'm sure you are," she responds as she moves her hand to caress his frame through his shirt once more.

Chuck and Sarah then walk to the greeting area of the restaurant and they confirm their reservation and they are then seated at their table together. They then order red wine and are promptly served their drinks just a few short minutes later.

Chuck then takes his glass of wine into his hand. "Sarah," Chuck starts and he waits until his wife gazes at him. "To our future," he declares as he extends his arm out holding the wine glass into the middle of the table.

"Our future," Sarah responds with a loving smile as she meets his hand in the middle of the table and they touch their glasses together.

"Happy anniversary, honey," Chuck then declares with a loving smile and she smiles affectionately back at him once more.

"Let's hope I don't forget this one," she says to him with a sad smile and Chuck's loving grin fades and he turns upset on seeing his wife distressed. He moves to take her hand with his own one and they begin to stare intimately at each other.

"Sarah, don't do this to yourself. There's only one person responsible for this, Nicholas Quinn," he pauses, and the husband and wife continue to burn an intimate stare into the eyes of each other. "I love you and I will never stop loving you. That's the only thing that should be on your mind tonight."

On hearing his declarations, Sarah begins to play around with his hand that his holding her own and she continues her intimate stare into his eyes. "I kind of want to kiss you right now. How do you feel about it?" she asks as she continues to stare intimately into his eyes before averting her glance for the briefest of moments to his lips instead.

"I'm open to it," he responds and she emits a suppressed laugh in approval once more before leaning over the table and Chuck meets her in the middle as they connect their lips together in a long moment of affection. On parting for desperately needed air in their lungs, they continue to hover over the table and Sarah gazes into his eyes just a few inches away from his face for a long moment before finally pulling back as the waitress arrives to take their order. They both spend the next minute deciding what to order which is difficult because they both love numerous Italian foods but they both settle and opt for the same thing as they order bolognese together. The waitress then finishes their order and walks away leaving them in the company of each other once more.

"Have we been here before?" she asks him and he shakes his head no.

"It's our first time," he declares with a loving smile and she returns.

"We will definitely have to come here again. It's amazing," she responds and he smiles adoringly at her.

"Yeah, we're lucky to have gotten a reservation. It's normally fully booked days in advance. We haven't been before but we have tried to get a reservation one night a few months ago," he informs her and she nods and smiles at him.

"Sarah, I know I told you at the apartment, but you look so breathtakingly beautiful tonight," he declares and she blushes profusely at his comment.

"Thank you. You look really good too," she responds and he grins at her as he moves his hand into the middle of the table once more and she takes it as they begin to play around with each others hand once more.

"I can't tell you how happy I am that you came back to me. Baby, when you told me at the fountain you didn't feel it any more I thought I had lost you," he declares emotionally and she smiles lovingly at him and she affectionately plays around with his hand once more.

"Chuck, speaking out my feelings have never been easy but I can quite comfortably say that you are the best guy I have ever met in my life, _period_. Truly, I feel privileged to be in your company right now never-mind living and sleeping together with you," she jokes and he laughs at her. "Chuck, I really mean it. In the only few weeks of memory that I have of you, you have done nothing but help me. You're also a gentleman by the way, because I don't know many guys that wouldn't have jumped my bones if I offered sex to them and you have refused me numerous times already,"

"Sar..."

Sarah interrupts his intervention. "Please let me finish, Chuck. Words don't come easy to me," she jokes and he smiles and nods his head in acceptance.

"You truly are one of a kind, Chuck. And just so you know, I don't plan to go anywhere," she declares as she continues to play with his hand that they have been holding onto each other for a short while.

"That's good, because I don't plan for you to either. In fact, I'm never gonna let you go. I'm gonna be chasing and bugging you till we're eighty," he jokes and she giggles approvingly at his words.

"My own personal kidnapper," she then jokes and he winces.

"Ouch," he responds to her in mock hurt as they then play around with each others hand once more. "Now it's my turn to want to kiss you. After your words to me."

He watches her shake her head as they continue to stare into each others eyes before she playfully responds, "No thanks."

He winces once more. "Ooh, I see how it is! You get what you want but not me. For that, the week without sex is going to become two," he declares with a wide grin.

"Chuck, don't you even think about it!" she warns him as she shakes her head in disapproval.

"Then give me what I want or it's happening," he retorts with his continued grin.

"Fine," she concedes as she moves in motion towards him and they connect their lips together again. They stay connected until sadly once more, they're forced to break the smoldering kiss in a desperate attempt for air

"So, about that week?" she asks against his lips as she gazes into his eyes.

"I'll think about it," he smirks as they immediately proceed to kiss each other once more before then sitting back and they smile at each other as they drown out the noisy restaurant and continue their stare onto each other. Their dinner then arrives and they start to eat together only for Sarah to pause her actions as Chuck isn't doing much eating and he is gazing adoringly at her instead.

"What?" she asks playfully as she holds the fork in her hand and she gazes adoringly at him.

"Sorry. Always had a fascination with watching you eat," he declares with a loving grin and she smiles at him.

"So not only are you kidnapping me, you're stalking me too. Should I be worried?" she asks flirtatiously.

"Be very worried," he responds as he winks his eyebrows at her and she giggles at him.

Chuck then begins to eat his own food and it's her turn this time to watch him instead. _Let's see how he likes it!_

He quickly picks up on it and he pauses from eating and he gazes at her. "What?" he asks cutely.

"It's my turn. I wanted to see how you like it," she states endearingly and she watches him grin and shrug his shoulders nonchalantly.

"Sarah, it doesn't bother me," he replies, before immediately raising his fork to his mouth as he takes a mouthful of his food and she watches him eating. He even winks his eyebrows at her once more causing her to laugh a suppressed laugh.

"I can see why you like to watch because I'm now feeling the same," she admits with a loving smile and he grins at her.

"Now who's the stalker?" he retorts playfully with his continued grin.

"That would be me," she responds.

"Maybe I should do a background check on you," he declares.

"Good luck with that! I'm good at hiding my background," she declares as she continues to stare intimately into his eyes.

"Not good enough to hide from me, missy! I know who you are," he retorts confidently and she giggles once more.

"Oh so confident in yourself, aren't you?" she retorts playfully as she continues to burn him a loving stare.

"You know it," he responds with another wink of the eyebrows and she giggles once more...

* * *

 **A short while later**

Chuck and Sarah have just finished eating their meals together at the Italian restaurant.

"That was lovely," Sarah declares to him as she gazes into Chuck's eyes.

"It was," he responds with a loving grin and a nod of his head.

"So how does this rank among our dates then?" she asks him with an affectionate smile.

"One of our best," he declares and she giggles approvingly.

"Thank you for tonight, Chuck. I feel like a normal girl just enjoying my time with a normal guy, who I happen to really like," she declares as she continues to stare into his eyes, their eye contact between each other had barely broken since they first arrived here, nor would it any time soon either.

"Well he really likes you too," he declares back and Sarah smiles affectionately at him as they move to close the distance between themselves as they kiss each other once more.

"You smell and taste delicious, by the way," she whispers against his lips.

"So do you," he responds as they kiss each other once more.

On separating from their latest kiss, Sarah looks into his eyes as she states, "Chuck, I hope you know and realize that I'm getting very turned on right now. And it would kill me if you blow me off again like you did the other day."

He smiles at her. "What if I told you I wouldn't blow you off any more," he responds as their faces are inches apart from where they are leaning over the table and he watches as her eyes widen and she now becomes very interested in the topic of conversation.

"Then I would say that we should either hurry up with or skip dessert and head back home," she responds as she gazes at him from where she is leaning into his proximity.

"Dessert first, we have all the time in the world," he declares to her with a loving grin.

"Ok," she smiles at him as they sit back once more and the husband and wife order dessert together and it arrives a few minutes later as they begin to share the chocolate cake romantically with each other.

Chuck is feeling deliriously happy right now. Sarah likewise, the exact same. This is the best date that Sarah has ever been on and when Chuck had promised sex just earlier, she had almost exploded on the spot because he had asked for a week from her and this is only day three so they are way ahead of schedule, not that she's complaining!

Sarah moves to gather some of the cake onto the fork she is holding and she extends it out towards Chuck who is leaning towards her over the table they're seated at and she watches as he opens his mouth to take the contents from the fork and she smiles adoringly on watching him do said action.

"This is delicious," Chuck declares on eating the mouthful of dessert that Sarah had just fed him.

"Hurry up and give me mine so I can tell you if I feel the same," she responds to him with a wide smile and he grins and she watches as he take his own fork and gathers some of the cake and she leans forward as he does before he then raises it up and towards her mouth and she accepts it into her mouth as she stares at him. She then begins to chew it and she closes her eyes briefly because of how delicious the dessert actually is. Chuck is right but oh so wrong. This is more than just delicious, it is heaven.

"Mmm, my god. Chuck, it's mouth-watering. It's the best dessert I've ever tasted," she declares to him and she watches him nod his head and a wide grin forms on his face.

"It is," he admits as the young reconciling couple continue to share their dessert until finishing it together.

On finishing their dessert, they spend the next few minutes in reflection of a very successful date and a wonderful evening spent in each others company.

The reconciling married couple then receive their bill which Chuck pays and they then begin to depart the restaurant together.

"Wow, Chuck, I knew it would be expensive but that really was expensive," she declares in amazement to him.

"Sarah, we're worth it," he responds and she smiles affectionately at him. "after everything that has happened to us, we deserve some luxury."

"You're right," she responds affectionately.

The couple then head arm in arm to where Sarah's Lotus is parked and they enter it together. On entering it, and being in the company of each other, they move to kiss once more and their hands now begin to roam intimately over each other as Chuck's hands find their way up to Sarah's face and Sarah's hands find their way up and down his frame before finishing on his face.

On breaking from the kiss, Chuck smiles at her and she smiles back at him.

"Sarah, it's still quite early, do you want to go to the beach together first before heading home?" he asks with a loving smile and she returns the facial gesture.

"That sounds nice," Sarah responds before they move to put their seat belts on and depart for their beach together…

* * *

 **A short while later**

It has just gone 11pm in Los Angeles and Chuck and Sarah have just arrived at the beach together. Chuck walks hand in hand with Sarah, until they find a spot to sit and it is deserted with just the two of them out there alone together, which is perfect for them both, as that is how they prefer to be.

On sitting down, they cosy into each other together as Sarah rests her head into his body.

"I come here a lot. It's so relaxing and peaceful," he declares.

Sarah lifts herself up from where her head was resting into him. "I can see why," she responds with a loving smile and he grins back at her.

"Sarah, you're the greatest thing to ever happen to me. You are everything I needed and more. Each morning I wake up I thank god for allowing you to come into my life. We've faced challenges, but we have always came through them. And I know that we are going to come through this one too," he declares and she gives him her brightest smile of the night as she moves her hand up to caress his face.

"We are," she declares with a loving grin.

"I love you, Sarah. I know you can't tell me the same right now. But that's ok. I hope in time you will, and I will be right here when you do," he declares emotionally and Sarah beams him a loving smile, as she caresses his cheek once more. Sarah then moves her head in motion towards him and he quickly joins her as they move to kiss each other, and their hands begin to roam territorially over each others face. They continue to kiss as seconds turn into minutes, and Sarah can't bear the separation of their bodies for a moment longer as she moves her right arm to wrap around his left shoulder from where they are sitting next to each other and she turns her body and she moves to climb onto him and he lowers his legs until she is now sitting on his thighs and is straddling him. He grins up at her from where she is hovering above him and she smiles as they adjust themselves to kiss once more and Sarah continues to run her hands up and down her husband's masculine frame.

The husband and wife continue their skirmish with each other as they heatedly make out with each other and Chuck begins to fall back on the beach and she follows him every inch of the way, their lips remaining super-glued together for several passionate minutes. Right now, Sarah has forgotten that they are on a public beach and she is close to unzipping his pants, pulling down her panties and taking his arousal inside of her on this very same spot. However, Chuck senses his wife's arousal and he breaks the kiss with her.

"Sarah, we should head back, before we end up in jail," he declares to her with a suppressed chuckle.

Sarah laughs on hearing his words, and she nods her head as she begins to climb up and she takes her husband's hands to help pull him up and Sarah begins to pull and tug at his hand as they purposely head towards her Lotus once more…

* * *

 **A short while later**

Chuck and Sarah have just arrived back outside of their home. They had came close to having sex, or making love depending on which of the two you ask in Sarah's car. Sarah is extremely aroused and didn't want to wait until returning to their home. Chuck being the gentleman that he is and always will be, was worried about people seeing them and he insisted on waiting until they return, of which they now have.

Sarah fires down the engine and she glances at him and they smile at each other and Chuck watches as she then begins to depart her side of the vehicle and he quickly departs his own and he closes the door after him before walking around to where Sarah is waiting for him on the pavement near to the entrance of their apartment complex. They gaze adoringly at each other, and he walks into her proximity as they begin to kiss once more for the umpteenth time today. Sensing that Sarah doesn't feel like doing any walking right now, he wraps his arms around her waist as he expertly begins to walk and kiss her at the same time, though stopping to gasp when he feels his wife place her hand onto his crotch and his eyes almost fly open when he feels her hand begin to play with the zip.

"Stop it," he commands as he swats her hand and he picks up the pace as Sarah continues to trust in him to do the walking and guiding them around objects as her lips remain locked together with his own as she walks backwards and he walks forwards until they end up outside of the door to their apartment.

On reaching their destination, Chuck pauses to thank the heavens that they didn't have an accident on the way to the door and he removes his arm from around Sarah's waist causing her to groan into his mouth at the loss of the contact and he fiddles with his pockets in search of their house key. On successfully locating it, he quickly raises it up out of his jeans and towards the lock as his wife continues to attack his lips and her hand continues to play and fiddle around with his pants.

Thankfully, he is able to quickly open the door and they almost fall inside but he successfully grabs hold of Sarah to stop her from falling backwards and she pauses from kissing him briefly to glance behind her to see what almost caused her to fall. She then fixes her gaze back on him once more and she begins to pull him backwards with one of her hands gripping hold of his shirt while the other continues to fiddle with his pants.

They both enter into their apartment and Chuck kicks the door shut with his foot. Even if it's still open, he doesn't care one hooter because the only thing on his mind right now is expressing his love with his wife after three painstakingly long weeks since he last did with her on that bullet train just before their carriages separated from each other.

Sarah continues leading him as she pulls at his shirt and they expertly manage to avoid all of their furniture curtsy of Chuck navigating his wife as she continues to pull him backwards towards wherever she is choosing to take him.

They have now entered the hallway leading to the main rooms of the apartment and their lips are still locked together in a heated make out session as an intense desire for each other continues to build up and reach danger levels. Chuck is very close to ripping his wife's clothes off right where they stand and he senses that she very much feels the same way towards him.

"Where are we heading?" he breathes out hoarsely to her.

"To shower. We're covered in sand," she responds in a flustered tone of her own and he watches her smirk at him causing him to nod and grin as they begin to kiss once more and she continues pulling at his shirt and she walks backwards and he forward until they finally land at the door to their destination. They pause momentarily, as their swollen lips continue to connect together and their tongues continue to wage a battle and skirmish inbetween their mouths. Sarah then loosens her grip on his shirt and she moves her arm behind her to fiddle with the door and she begins to open it gently, before placing her hand right back on his shirt once more and they walk inside it before Sarah closes the door and for the first time since arriving back at their apartment, she walks forward as she pushes Chuck into the door and Chuck laughs at the forceful contact of his wife.

She then raises her left hand up to grab hold of his hair to deepen the kiss further still whilst her right hand continues to remain firmly placed on his crotch. The zip of his pants are already undone and he feels her hand enter inside of the open zip as she takes a firm squeeze of his arousal causing his eyes to fly open to look at her as he begins to groan deeply into her mouth and he watches as she looks at him with her perfect sapphire orbs and she smirks at him and for the first time, he makes a suggestive contact of his own as he changes the destination of his hands from her waist and he lowers them slightly until his hands begin to take a firm hold of his wife's ass cheeks causing her to groan this time and he smirks approvingly. _Payback!_

He then feels her hand leave his pants and he feels her move it up as her right hand begins to play around with the buttons on the lower part of his shirt and their lips continue to remain locked and only separate when they have a desperate need of air. She quickly makes short work of his shirt and she removes her left hand gripping hold of his hair as she uses both hands to pull his shirt off of him and she begins to run her hands all over his now bare upper frame until both of her hands begin to travel down south and he feels both of her hands land at his belt. The belt is already open from Sarah's earlier attempts outside of their apartment and it only needs to buckled open and he feels her do exactly that. On her completing her action, she begins to pull his pants and underwear down until they are at his ankles and instantly on feeling his pants around his ankles, he adjusts his right foot to line it up behind his left foot and he uses his foot to expertly allow him to remove his shoe from his foot without breaking the kiss or his grip of his wife's ass. On being shoeless on his left foot, he instantly moves it behind his right one and this is harder to achieve because he is only now in a sock but he achieves it after a few seconds. On now being completely shoeless, he kicks off his pants and underwear leaving him now fully bare save for a pair of socks.

On him completing his actions, he feels her hand connect onto his arousal and he groans deeply once more. He then breaks their latest kiss and she groans at the loss.

"It's time for me to help you out of your dress," he declares and she nods as she pulls back from pinning him against the door slightly and he begins to help her climb out of her dress and he makes short work of it with it quickly ending up at her ankles.

"You've certainly done that before! You helped me out of it quicker than I could even get into it," she declares with a smirk and a wide grin forms on his face.

"Yeah," he admits as he sinks to his knee and he begins to loosen the straps of the heels his wife is wearing. On completing the task, he also discards his socks leaving him now fully bare. He then glances back up at his wife once more, and the only clothing now left on her is a matching lace underwear set.

He watches as she ushers him back up to her with her finger and he smiles as he stands up to her level once more. She instantly grabs hold of his shoulders and she pushes him back against the door once more as they lock their swollen lips together again and he takes the time to raise his hands up her back until landing where the back of her strapless bra is located. He begins to fiddle around with it for a brief second, until he quickly unclasps it from around her and it begins to fall down between where their two bodies are connected. He then lowers his hands down to her ass cheeks once more, and she moans into his mouth at the contact. He then begins to pull down his wife's panties with his hand as far as his hands will reach down from where she is pinning him into the door before she kicks herself out of them the remaining distance. She then breaks the kiss with him and she immediately takes his hand as she walks over to and pulls him along with her until they finally step into the shower together and on doing so, she grabs his shoulders once more and she pushes him until he is trapped in the corner and they adjust to lock their lips together once more and she releases her right hand from his shoulder and he glances out of the corner of his eye as she begins to fiddle with the shower controls and it quickly turns on. They both startle briefly, because the water is freezing cold but thankfully it quickly begins to heat up and Chuck gazes back infront of him once more at Sarah who is trapping him in the corner of the shower.

They gaze at each other and he smiles at her before Chuck moves his arms up to her shoulders and he gently attempts to move her around so that she can take a turn in the corner for a short while but he is met with strong resistance from Sarah who pushes and holds him back against the wall with her hands and she breaks the kiss.

"No," she says sternly and he does a double take at her abruptness with him for the first time today.

"Sarah, this isn't the most comfortable shower position for us both just fyi," he declares.

"I don't care. This is how I want it," she demands and he nods his head.

"Ok," he agrees to her demands.

They resume kissing and Sarah lifts her right leg up and Chuck immediately moves his hand to hold onto her leg now arched up in the air. She then breaks the kiss with him once more and he watches as her glance shifts down their bodies and she lines her vagina up with his arousal before consuming his length and he groans deeply and their already erratic breathing from the states they've both worked themselves up into intensifies further still. On successfully guiding him inside of her, she then moves back to kiss him once more, and he feels as she starts to move in motion up and down his length buried inside of her and he meets her own movement with some of his own as they continue to kiss each other. In all honesty, Chuck is not feeling much connection with his wife right now. This very much feels like stranger on stranger sex. He's certainly not sure what is up with his wife right now, because this isn't really a position that they usually have shower sex in, nor is it very comfortable at all. Chuck definitely isn't having sex with his wife right now and the experience is more similar to that of a stranger and a one night stand encounter. Chuck gulps at the realization that he has just come to. He gazes into her eyes, and he can see lust there but he doesn't see unconditional love and it instantly makes him feel a bit despondent and not as invested in the act.

They continue to remain in the position that Sarah has placed them both in as they have sex together in the corner of the shower but Chuck just wants this to be over. He certainly won't be able to have this kind of sex again but he daren't say anything so he keeps quiet and doesn't say much as he continues his thrusts and he keeps his lips locked with her own until they both climax one by one a short moment later...

 **A short while later**

Sarah has just stepped out of the shower with Chuck. What they had just had, was typical agent and mark sex. Sarah knows it. And she feels quite guilty for doing it with him, but it is all that she presently knows and remembers. Sarah knows that she has loved Chuck. And she is well on the road to loving him again. But she can't remember how to love him, what she is supposed to do with him, how she is supposed to behave with him, their favorite ways to make love, their favorite positions to make love in. It's all a new experience to her and she is having to start from the very beginning as she finds her way with him once more.

"Sarah?" he asks and she gazes at him.

"Yeah?" she responds as she continues to dry herself with the towel.

"What we just did in the shower just isn't going to work for me," he admits to her.

"Chuck, what do you mean?" she asks as she gazes at him.

"I can't pretend to do something I didn't enjoy. I would sooner have no sex than do that again," he responds to her and she frowns at him.

"Chuck, you can't have not enjoyed it that much, you came," she responds and she watches him strongly shake his head.

"Sarah, I didn't want to upset you by demanding that we stop. I'm not going to lie to you, it's not an experience I just enjoyed. Sarah, I can't just do sex with you. I'm not your mark or a one night stand. I'm your husband. We have _never_ just done sex. Our first time, we had known each other for three years and it was passionate love from the very start."

"What are you saying, Chuck?" she asks as she gazes at him from where they are stood together.

"Sarah, what I'm saying is that we are going to try it again, right now. But this time, not in the shower, but in our bed and it's not going to be sex between strangers because that's what that just was. I know you can't rush back into a committed unconditional relationship. But I can't just do sex. I don't know how to just do sex with you. I gave you what you wanted in the shower, and now you're going to give me what I want," he declares assertively to her and she gazes nervously at him over the potential commitment that is going to be required in this act.

"Chuck…" she starts but she is interrupted as moves into her proximity and he grabs hold of her shoulders as he kisses her. Slowly, he begins to lead her until she is now pinned up against the door, exactly how she had done to him just earlier.

Sarah breaks the kiss and she slants her head to the side. "Chuck..." she protests at his assertiveness with her which is going against every single spy instinct screaming at her telling her to not allow him to take control of her. Sarah has not allowed any man to dominate her in bed, ever. She doesn't know how to let go and submit herself to somebody else, she has always felt the need to remain in complete control of the situation with her partner.

He backs away from her slightly and she follows him as he then opens the door and instantly he places his lips against her own once more as he begins to walk her backwards exactly as they had done earlier. Their lips remain locked and Sarah gazes nervously into his eyes as he continues walking her into their bedroom and she continues backing herself up until feeling her feet connect together with their bed. She watches out the corner of her eye as he lifts their bed covers back and she then falls back slowly onto the bed and he is instantly on top of her as they continue to kiss and she instinctively readjusts herself until she is laying in the centre of the bed and she gazes up at him from where he is hovering over her. She then feels him raising his arms up until they begin to pin her hands in place to the bed and she breaks the kiss as she slants her head away from his own once more.

"Chuck..." she warns him as she begins to get agitated by his assertiveness with her as she gazes at him and he smiles lovingly at her.

"Sarah, please trust me, baby," he pleads emotionally with her and she gazes into his eyes as he looks pleadingly at her.

He moves to kiss her again and she doesn't object as she allows her lips to connect with his own as he continues to pin her arms to the bed with his strong hands and she feels the full weight of his masculine frame on her body holding the rest of her in place. She continues to gaze into his eyes in search of any sinister motive of his intentions towards her and he continues to stare back at her and on breaking the kiss every so often for air he smiles reassuringly at her.

He then breaks from kissing her and he pulls himself up slightly and he then begins to remove his right hand that is pinning her left hand and she is immediately tempted to use this as her cue to reverse the submission and to be the one on top so that she can remain in control of the situation but she waits to make a move until she has ascertained what he is doing. She continues to stare into his eyes and she doesn't break the eye contact with him as she feels his hand touch and connect with her left thigh briefly but the contact then breaks for a second or two until she then feels his hand now between her thighs and she immediately knows what he is doing. He is lining himself up with her.

A sudden rush of anxiety and dread takes form and her facial expressions show as such. "Chuck..." she immediately attempts to protest once more as she gazes into his eyes.

"Sarah, I would sooner burn myself alive before I betrayed and abused your trust. Please, just trust me," he pleads with her once more and she sighs deeply in a deeply conflicted state of mind. A large part of her is screaming at her that this is too much commitment, that she is compromising and exposing herself fully by letting him have his way with her. But the other half of her, the girl who desires and yearns to be normal is screaming at her that he is her husband, and that they have likely done this very same situation that they are in right now dozens if not hundreds of times.

She has no time for any further trail of thought, because he immediately enters inside of her and she instantly gasps at the feel of him inside of her once more and she gazes up at him into his eyes and he lowers his head to kiss her once more and she feels his right arm travel back up to meet and gently take hold of her outstretched hand once more.

They continue to kiss as Sarah feels him thrusting in and out of her in a slow, delicate rhythm and Sarah continues to gaze at him in search of any sinister motive from him from where he has her pinned but he continues to smile reassuringly at her as he continues his thrusting into her.

He then begins to increase the rhythm of his thrusts into her and Sarah continues to remain in her compromised and exposed position under him, with the full weight of him on her as all of her spy instincts continue to scream at her to reverse the submission immediately, to assert control on the situation once more. He then begins to release her hands, and instantly in a moment of panic, she raises them up to his chest and she arches herself up as she begins to attempt to flip him over so that she is the one on top but he stops her as he puts his own hands onto the very top of her arms where her arms connect onto her shoulders and he pushes her back down as they continue to stare into each others eyes and she watches him shake his head no at her with a loving smile.

"I love you more than I have ever loved anybody," he declares emotionally as he moves his hand to caress her cheek and she begins to study his face in search of any discrepancy to his words but she can't find anything other than absolute sincerity. "And because I do, you need to trust me. Because if you don't, then we are going to stop right now and this isn't a request, it's a demand."

She breathes out a long sigh in a deeply conflicted frame of mind once more. "Chuck, I'm not used to this," she says apprehensively to him as she looks nervously at him from where the weight of his body continues to trap her in place under him. She knows two hundred ways out of this position if she really wanted to use it but Chuck is not her enemy. As much as she knows that is true deep down, she is finding it extremely hard to shake off all her years of training warning and screaming at herself not to expose or to surrender herself to somebody else to do with her whatever he may so wish.

She watches him shake his head. "Sarah, you are. We have done it hundreds of times and if we are to continue to have sex, then I need you to surrender and give yourself to me. It's the only way it can work. I'm not prepared to accept any less so you're going to need to come to terms and deal with it, honey," he responds in an assertive and confident tone and she continues to gaze up at him.

He then lowers himself down to connect their swollen and puffy lips together again as his thrusts continue into her.

"Chuck!" she breathes into his mouth as she feels herself nearing an orgasm and she gazes up at him.

He smiles at her. "Let go, baby," he commands softly to her as he releases her arms and she still has an urge to flip him to assert control and dominance over him and the situation but she goes against every single instinct screaming at her and instead of raising her hands up to his shoulders to flip him, she raises her hands up to the back of his head to lock him in place instead as she rides out a powerful orgasm under the full weight of her husband on top of her with him also buried in the deepest corner inside of her.

"Chuck!" she cries out to him into his mouth once more as her eyes twist and roll and her toes dance and squirm as her climax shoots throughout her entire body and her already flushed face burns further still.

"I love you," he breathes into her mouth from where their lips continue to stay connected and she gazes into his eyes once more on hearing his declaration to her.

They then pause stationary, until Sarah has rode out her orgasm and she then begins to feel him pick up his thrusting into her once more.

With no trail of thought to her action, she removes one hand from around the back of his head and she re-positions it as she digs her nails into his back to hold him in place as his thrusts continue to increase and become much more vigorous and they both begin to pant and sweat profusely caused from all of their activities ever since they arrived back at their apartment however long ago it was.

And after a few short minutes more, Sarah quickly begins to feel another orgasm come along as Chuck continues to fuck her. No, not fuck. What Chuck is doing to her right now is the furthest thing away from him fucking her, as she had done with her previous sexual partners, such as Bryce. What Chuck and Sarah are doing right now together is making love. She can see and understand what is happening right now quite clearly. And she has never felt so powerless to stop it. She no longer even attempts to stop it as she willingly makes love together with him.

"Chuck!" she breathes to him in a broken tone and they make deep intimate eye contact once more.

"I know baby, me too," he groans back to her and she does an instant double take. _How does he know that I'm close? Oh, use your brain, Sarah! He's my husband not my bit of fun! Of course he knows!_

He thrusts into her a final few times, and he breaks from their latest kiss as he cries out, "Sarah!"

Seeing the look on his face, in addition to his cries to her, she pulls him back down to her with her hand placed behind his head as they kiss each other once more and she feels him ejaculate inside of her which drives her over the edge to her third orgasm of the evening.

They stay locked in this position for the next minute as they begin to pant and sweat profusely and they separate their lips but not their heads as he moves to touch his forehead against her own which gives her another claustrophobic feeling of being trapped under him and at his mercy but she doesn't resist the contact. She is too physically spent and drained to resist him any further, what they have just did was the most intense sexual encounter that she can ever remember having with anybody.

And after what feels like an eternity, he begins to remove his body weight—though she immediately begins to frown and yearn for it to be put right back in place—from her and he rolls off to the side of her. She gazes up at the ceiling of their bedroom briefly, as she continues to pant furiously from their activities together. The agent in her is screaming at her to not turn to make intimate eye contact with him. They have had sex now. Her mission is already done. Any further intimacy is unnecessary and is not a help to the mission. Previously, with any mark or partner she may have had, she would give them only enough as necessary to keep them as her pawn, but she would NEVER give herself unconditionally to somebody like she had just did with her husband. And you know what? It felt good. It had taken her a few minutes to surrender herself to him, but once she did, she has to admit, it felt amazing. And true to his word, he didn't betray her trust or do anything to her against her will. All he did was love her, and it is now up to her to find it in herself to love him. Because otherwise, she may as well just leave him and put him out of his misery.

She then turns to face him and as she does so, he smiles adoringly at her.

She smiles back at him.

"So, how was it?" he asks her as they burn an intimate stare into each others eyes.

"Intense," she admits.

"I'm sorry," he responds with a sympathetic smile.

She moves to caress his cheek. "Don't be. Chuck, I'm surprised that was all there was to it. You were really soft and gentle, other than the pinning of my arms which I struggled to allow you to do," she admits and she watches him laugh deeply at her and she frowns briefly at him laughing at her reservations.

"Sarah, what did you expect? Torture? Slapping? Removal of body parts?" he asks as he laughs once more and she nods her head and concedes as she begins to laugh too. _He has a point._

"Ok, fair point. Chuck, it's not easy for me, though. It's not you who lost your memory, remember?"

She watches him nod in acceptance. "Fair point. And I'm sorry for joking. But Sarah, we needed to do that. We can't ever get back to how we were if you can't even submit yourself to me in bed," he states factually.

She nods. "I know," she responds as she begins to yawn as she suddenly feels very exhausted from their intense activities.

"Ready for sleep?" he asks with a loving smile.

"Uh-huh, I'm exhausted," she responds.

She watches him open out his arm and she smiles at him as she moves into his proximity before turning and backing her naked body into his own one. Which is another first in her suppressed and missing memory. Before Chuck, she has never slept in the same bed naked with somebody before. His hand then finds its way up her body from where they are now spooning until landing onto her upper abdomen once more, exactly how it was positioned when they first woke up this morning together only this time, their bodies are now completely bare and exposed.

"Goodnight, Sarah. I love you baby," he declares and she feels him kiss into the back of her hair where his head is resting and she smiles as she closes her eyes at touch and at the words of her husband.

"Goodnight, Chuck," she responds, as she continues to regulate her breathing back to normalcy after her events with her husband.

Sarah then begins to drift off to a peaceful sleep comforted in knowing that tonight, and for the first time in her present missing memory, she had made love together with somebody…

* * *

 **AN3** Well then, I hope you enjoyed the chapter. Please leave your thoughts on it. In the mature category, view count halves so I really do rely on reviews and interaction to know whether people are actually reading this or not. Now I kind of wanted the shower scene to not be so good. Quite simply because Chuck didn't enjoy it for a single second.

 **AN4** I know the mark thing is difficult. It's difficult for me as a die-hard Charah shipper (and one of the biggest) too. But that is just the reality of the poor writing of the canon universe sadly. In all of my non canon stories, there is never any talk of marks Sarah may have had but in canon it was sadly ever present and I quite simply had to show Sarah's mindset and how it changed and began to shift as she gave more and more of herself to him as the scene continued on.

 **AN5** Next Chapter: More Charah intimacy, the support group, and Chuck and Sarah have an unannounced guest turn up at their home in a typical trademark fashion ;)


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